Orostachys macrophylla forms a large, pale green rosette of fleshy leaves that surrounds itself with young “pups” on the underside. In late summer the main rosette elongates upward into a long cone (Dunce Cap) and bursts out with white blooms at the summit. After blooming the parent plant of Orostachys macrophylla dies, but the babies (pups) that surround it will replace it.

An Asian native, Green Dunce Cap is an unusual plant for containers, walls and curiosity gardens.

Orostachys macrophylla prefers full sun and average to poor, well-drained soil. This is a deciduous plant that will disappear in winter, unlike the Hens and Chicks, which it resembles, but it will return in spring.