All About Haworthia Care

How to grow the hardiest succulent, haworthia!

Today is all about haworthia—the hardiest succulent around and a great choice for those who need something that can survive a lot of neglect. Does that sound like you or someone you know? Then let’s dive in!

Haworthia background

Haworthia succulents are a large and diverse genus of plants in the asphodelaceae family, asphodeloideae subfamily, aloeae tribe. They are close relatives of aloe plants, which you may be familiar with.

Haworthia plants generally stay small, producing pups or babies as their main growth (as opposed to growing up or out). Most varieties have striking vertical spiky succulent leaves that are packed together in tight rosettes.

These little cuties are from southern Africa, largely the southwestern Cape. The haworthia genus is not a well-understood genus, though. You’ll quickly realize this if you start to research exactly what type of haworthia plant you have and realize that plants that look exactly the same have different names.

Here’s why that is. The taxonomy of the genus is dominated by amateurs, and therefore the literature about haworthia isn’t really great. In 2013, many haworthia species moved to the haworthiopsis and tulista genuses. This coincided with the last update of The Plant List, which outlined 150 species of haworthia.

At the end of the day, these little suckers have just been really difficult for people to pin down and differentiate. So I’m going to do my best when talking about the different varieties as I understand them.

Common varieties

Below are some brief facts about some of the most common types of Haworthia you will likely encounter. Any big box garden store will have a great selection of haworthia in the late spring and summer, while local nurseries might have some of the rarer types. Whatever the variety, haworthia care steps remain largely the same.

1. Fasciata (aka zebra or striped succulent)

Haworthia fasciata, aka the Zebra plant succulent or striped succulent, is probably one of the most popular varieties of haworthia. I have also seen this variety referred to as haworthiopsis attenuata and haworthia attenuata. It has thick, spiky dark green leaves with raised bright white “stripes” on them. 

This variety stays very small, topping out at only about a half of a foot tall. It can grow a bit larger than a half of a foot wide, though, by producing new baby rosettes that spread. I have a stunning zebra haworthia plant that has grown very slowly over the years.

2. Attenuata (also aka zebra or striped succulent)

Haworthia attenuata is also referred to as the zebra plant succulent or striped succulent. And it is referred to as haworthiopsis attenuata. Yeah, I told you it’s confusing. Both of these varieties are known as zebra plant haworthias because they look so similar. 

The biggest difference between fasciata and attenuata is that while fasciata has relatively smooth inner leaves, attenuata does not. You can see the bumps along the insides of the leaves here. From what I’ve seen, the markings sometimes appear less raised and less striking on the attenuata. 

3. Coarctata (aka spiky succulent)

I don’t know that this variety has a common name. In fact, I had this plant for years before finding out what variety of haworthia it was. It took me posting it to Tiktok a few months ago asking for plant ID help to figure out it was a coarctata. I don’t typically see this one in our stores here, but I did buy this one from the Ikea plant section about 5 or so years ago.

This variety grows a bit taller and spikier, and it has more solid leaves. Mine is green, but I recently noticed a stunning almost black one in my neighbor’s house. She said she’s had it for a long time; it started as one rosette and has multiplied over the years. She kindly gave me a cutting 🙂

4. Mirabilis

The mirabilis variety looks a bit different. It isn’t spiky like the other varieties I’ve outlined, and its colors are less bold. Instead, it has shorter, chunkier, very succulent-looking leaves that are a bit paler green. Almost translucent looking. 

The variety pictured below is Haworthia mirabilis mundula, which I’ve got in a teeny tiny pot. This is a very slow growing variety, so these are great in little pots or small repurposed items like teacup planters.

5. Cooperi

Cooperi is definitely more like the mirabilis variety than the zebra varieties. It has densely packed rosettes that are green with a translucent hint. I don’t currently have this variety, but I’ve owned one in the past.

I got it from a local farmer’s market, but it was long before I knew about the dangers of overwatering plants. Sadly I killed this plant with too much love in the form of water. It still makes me sad, because this was such a cool-looking plant! I had to dig deep into the archives to find some pics.

6. Limifolia (aka fairy washboard)

Haworthia limifolia, also known as the fairy washboard succulent, has more subdued markings and larger leaves. The leaves are also slightly wider, especially at the base of the plant.

Lighting needs

As succulents, these plants generally prefer higher light levels. If you have your haworthia plants indoors, bright indirect light will be great. However, they can also tolerate medium light very well. That’s because in their natural habitat, these plants grow in shade or semi-shade (under bushes or overhangs, etc.). 

I have had mine in a variety of lighting conditions; some conditions even get bright direct sunlight through a window for a portion of the day. They have all done great. Make sure you ease any plant into any amount of bright direct light, though. If you don’t, the foliage could burn.

Water & soil

Water these plants sparingly. Too much water will lead to root rot and will kill them. Too little water could lead to some shriveling, or it could lead to the leaves taking on purple and red hues. To help ensure your haworthia plants are the happiest, water when the soil dries out. For mine, that’s about once every 1.5 weeks in the hotter months and about once a month in the winter.

I have all of my haworthia succulents planted in well-draining succulent soil. (Don’t have any? Learn how to mix your own succulent soil at home.) In their natural habitat, these plants grow in sands and on rocky areas, so soil with great drainage is important.

Temperature & humidity

Haworthia succulents tolerate all normal household temperatures. However, you’ll want to keep these plants in environments that do not get below 50 degrees Fahrenheit. You’ll really only need to keep that in mind if you take your plants outdoors for the spring and summer.

They also tolerate a variety of humidity levels very well. However, higher humidity can be a problem. In fact, they do quite well in dry indoor air! That’s because they are used to drier air in their natural habitat.

Repotting & propagating

You will not need to repot your haworthia plant often. In fact, they like being quite snug in their pots. However, as your healthy plant produces new baby plants over the years, it will begin to outgrow its pot. Repotting in the spring is a great time to prune and propagate haworthia.

Using clean scissors or a clean knife, cut an offset off of the mother plant. Include as much of the set as possible; that’s where the new roots will emerge from. Allow the cut end of the offset to dry for a day or so. I just set mine on a windowsill for a few days. 

Plant in a small pot with succulent soil. Water when the soil dries, but give it a bit more water than you normally would while the roots are developing. After a few weeks, give the cutting a gentle tug to see if it has started to root. Once it has started to root, make sure you ease back on watering to give it only normal levels of water for a haworthia. 

For more on succulent propagation and growing, check out my guide to propagating succulents from leaves and cuttings.

Bright-colored haworthia

If you’ve ever seen brightly colored succulents in stores like Home Depot and Lowe’s, you’ve probably wondered if they are real. They are not; they are painted. And they are probably haworthia plants.

I die a little bit on the inside when I see them. You can clearly see that they have been painted. New growth will not retain this color, and covering a paint in plant is obviously not good for it. Please don’t buy these, even if the unicorn planters are really cute. 🙂

Wrapping up…

If you like to neglect your plants, haworthia is a great choice! It’s also my go-to for tiny repurposed planters like teacups and mugs. I hope this guide helps you better understand haworthia plants and how to best care for them. Happy planting!

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