Cotyledon Tomentosa - Bear's Paws

Cotyledon Tomentosa or "Bear's Paws" is a cute flowering perennial evergreen shrub. A native of South Africa it's a succulent with large chunky ovate fuzzy green leaves. It got it's nickname "Bear Paws" because of the "claws" on top of it's leaves.

These plants can grow approximately 2 feet (24 inches) from the ground up and are very fragile in my opinion. BEWARE however for these plants are POISONOUS! They contain Cardiac Lycosides that can cause both acute and chronic poisoning. Keep them away from your children and pets.

Care for these plants is easy. When having them as a house plant, it's best to have them close to the window with a lot of bright sunlight. The south window of you lovely home may be a good start. When outdoors however, you might want to give these plants a little bit of protection against direct sunlight if you're living in a place where it gets really hot. In a lot of places in California, the temperature can easily get into the triple digits and with that being said it's a good idea to shield your little bear paws from the sun.

When watering these plants, first check the soil if it's DRY to the touch. If the soil is very dry go ahead and water it thoroughly. Water them with caution though specially when the temperature reaches 41°F (5°C) or lower. Their roots might start to freeze specially when it's wet. Also make sure that your soil drains water rapidly. Buying cactus soil from your nearest hardware or plant store is a good start. I personally add little bit of perlite to make draining faster.

By spring time these cute plants will start to bloom their tiny flowers! Colors of these flower are Red, Orange or Yellow (these are the once I have seen).