Red Spine Succulent

This small leaf succulent grows up to 6 feet (1.8 meters) tall. The thin stem is red, and is covered in thousands of fine, light red, hair-like spines. The smooth-edged, needle-like leaves are a shade of moss green that gradient shifts to hazel at the top. Thick bunches of them grow from the base in random directions. The leaves are flimsy, but take some effort to detach.

It is steady-growing, taking 12 months to reach maturity. Once mature, a handful of flowers, with petals that are purple at the sides and gold at the center, grow at the top, reappearing once every 3 years. The flower head is made up of handfuls of petals in raised layers. It has a fairly strong scent that smells like sugar.

The leaf succulent's skin is delicate, the vivid orange flesh is waxy, and the brown sap is thin and can cause blindness if consumed.