Crassula lactea - Taylor's Parches

Taylor's Parches is one of the prettiest succulents in the garden and was introduced in 1774 by Mr Masson from the Cape of Good Hope. The name refers to the milk-white sweetly scented star-shaped flowers. Flowers are borne in a panicle, carried on a flower-cluster-stalk 4-10 cm long, hairy. Flowers are white, scented, with rose colored anthers. Sepals are 5, very short, fleshy 1.5-3 mm long, lanceshaped, pointed, to almost round at tips, keeled, hairless, green. Flowers are star-shaped, fused at base for 0.5-0.8 mm, white or off-white and sometimes tinged red towards tips. Petals are lanceshaped to linear-lanceshaped, 5-8 mm long, sharply pointed. Taylor's Parches is a small perennials shrub, little branched from the base, flexuous, 1-2 ft. high. The whole plant is smooth. Stem is curved, prostrate, scabrous. Branches are up to 40 cm long, with old leaves not deciduous. Leaves are stalkless, crossing each other in pairs, thick, fleshy, leathery, narrow-obovate, to inverted-lanceshaped, narrowed and fused at the base round the stem, 3-5 cm long, 1.5-2.5 cm broad. Taylor's Parches is native to Southern Africa, cultivated elsewhere.