Small shrub with thickened trunk, branches and roots. It has extremely elegant foliage, the heart-shaped leaves attractively marked by the deeply impressed veins and clothed with soft, silky, silver hairs. Approximately 1 foot tall, often as wide or wider with age.
Plants grow during cool weather from autumn to spring.
After flowering in the spring, they go dormant during which time they should be kept shaded and dry. This species probably can be kept in growth all year in areas with cool summers, such as coastal California. In nature, it grows in rocky soil or among rocks in a forbidding desertlike environment. However, the apparent severity of its growing conditions is moderated by frequent and cool oceanic fogs and mists. Cultivated plants must be watered cautiously when coming out of dormancy at the end of summer as too much water at that time can lead to rotting of the roots.