How to Identify a Bear's Paw (Cotyledon tomentosa)? Master These Identification Methods

I. Appearance

Bear's Paw (Cotyledon tomentosa) is a perennial succulent herbaceous plant with a small shrub-like habit and many branches. It grows about 30 cm tall with a spread of 11-12 cm. The stems are green, cylindrical, and covered with dense short hairs.

II. Leaves

The leaves of Bear's Paw are obovate-lanceolate to oblong-ovate, flat and spoon-shaped, rather thick and fleshy, arranged in opposite pairs. They are about 2.3-6.5 cm long and about 1.5-3.5 cm wide. The surface is green and densely covered with very fine short white hairs. The leaf tips have notches, and the front one-third bears red tooth-like serrations shaped very much like a bear's paw.

III. Flowers

Bear's Paw produces dichasial cymes, with red flower stalks, green sepals, and an orange-red corolla. The floral tube is about 15 mm long and about 9 mm wide. The petals are yellow and recurved, and the anthers are also yellow and rather flat. The blooming period is from July to September.