C. perfoliata var. falcata is a much-grown and prized landscape plant as well as the parent of many a choice hybrids, to which it imparts its desirable foliage characteristics. Var. perfoliata, in contrast, is seen in few collections or landscape designs—not that it is unworthy; its foliage shares the attractive gray epidermis of the more familiar variety, but the similarity ends there. Rather than distichous and falcate, the leaves are thicker and rigidly straight and spreading, arranged in four neat ranks. The flowers also differ in being white rather than crimson. Despite the rigid appearance of the foliage, it is quite brittle. This plus its spreading nature make for bulky packing and almost assure that some leaf tips will snap in the process. However, the plant is so easily grown that it will quickly replace any damage with clean new growth. Rooted cuts of HBG 67820, a plant collected Aug., 1990, by M. Vassar (4529), in the Helspoortpas ca. 22 km. NW of Grahamstown, E. Cape, S. Africa. $4.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 75 (2), March - April, 2003