12 Popular Fuzzy Succulent Types Your Kids Will Love

There are several types of fuzzy leaf succulents that you can put in your home. They vary in form and texture and, if properly taken care of, they all bloom well. A fuzzy leaf succulent will be incredibly popular with your kids and inspire a love of gardening from an early age without the pain of cactus needles.

Bear’s Paw (cotyledon tomentosa)

Bear paw plants are some of the cutest of the fuzzy succulent types. They are relatively simple to care for and moderately easy to propagate. You also get the added benefit of bright orange/red flowers from the Bear’s Paw succulent. In all, the Bear Paw is a great choice for beginners or collectors.

Wooly Rose (Echeveria ‘Doris Taylor’)

The Wooly Rose is also called the Doris Taylor. It is a simple succulent to care for and easy to propagate. It will produce yellow to red flowers if taken care of well. If you have your Wooly Rose in bright enough light, the leaves will get red edges on them.

The Wooly Rose should be watered only when the soil is dry but it is not as drought tolerant as other succulents. Make sure to water it regularly during its growing season: every other week at least.

Firecracker Plant (Echeveria setosa Var. Deminuta)

The firecracker plant is one of several varieties that have been known as Hen and Chicks. While each individual rosette is small, the plant produces prodigious buds that can quickly cover an area. This fuzzy leaf succulent is easy to grow. Just make sure to remove any dead leaves on the bottom of the plant to prevent a mealybug infestation.

The firecracker succulent is able to stand light frost and direct sun so it’s a popular choice to grow outdoors. When its environment is cycled correctly, it will produce a bunch of bright red and yellow flowers on a long stem in the spring and early summer.

Teneriffe Houseleek (Sempervivum ciliosum)

The Teneriffe houseleek is a large rosette shaped fuzzy leaf succulent. The rosettes need a moderate amount of water and if you are underwatering them, the edges of the leaves can turn red or orange so watch for that. The Sempervivum ciliosum grows in colonies when the rosettes bud over the course of the year.

This particular fuzzy leaf succulent will bloom in summer. Flowers range from white and yellow to red and purple. This species is an excellent example of a succulent that dies after blooming. But the gap will quickly be filled in with buds from the other colony members.

Panda Plant/Chocolate soldier (Kalanchoe tomentosa)

Panda plants are easy to find in local garden centers and home improvement stores. They are also simple to grow. While they can’t be completely neglected, they are quite draught tolerant if you forget them. Kalanchoe tomentosa will grow quite large, whether they are grown indoors or outdoors.

This is a fuzzy leaf succulent that will bloom with tubular flowers in the spring and summer. Make sure to protect these plants from direct sunlight. While they need a lot of sun, they require light to be filtered to prevent sunburn.

Pickle Plant (Kleinia stapeliiformis)

Pickle plants grow in a group of thin stalks. The stalks individually are thin and they spread via rhizomes, like an iris, under the surface. New stalks are white until they turn green when exposed to the UV light of the sun.

The Kleinia stapeliiformis will bloom prolifically in the summer if cared for correctly. While the pickle plant is not a velvety soft plant, it is still a fuzzy leaf succulent by many.

White Chenille Plant (Echeveria pulvinata Frosty)

The white chenille plant is definitely a unique type of fuzzy leaf succulent. It has small lobed leaves on the perimeter of a thick, flat stalk. The Echeveria pulvinata frosty can grow in shade if necessary and grows quite well indoors or out.

If the white chenille plant doesn’t get enough sun, it will get leggy and the stalk will grow very long. From late spring to early fall, this plant will grow numerous yellow orange flowers.

Copper Spoons (Kalanchoe orgyalis)

Copper spoons is a succulent that appears more like a garden perennial. It has a unique cinnamon color on top of the leaves and a gray bottom to the leaves. The Kalanchoe orgyalis is one of the rare fuzzy succulent types that is dormant in summer. This means that it flowers in late winter to early spring.

The blooms on the copper spoons plant are bright yellow and they last for some time. If necessary the copper spoons plant can be planted in regular soil. Which is good because they can grow quite large and will need to be repotted regularly as they grow.

Millot Kalanchoe (Kalanchoe millotii)

The millot kalanchoe is a bushy fuzzy leaf succulent that has scalloped edges on the leaves. It tends to grow in large bunches and spread via budding. If you prune it back, the plant will grow even more densely.

If cared for correctly, the Kalanchoe millotii will bloom with large bunches of white flowers at the end of stalks in the summertime.

Hedgehog Ice Plant (Delosperma echinatum)

The hedgehog ice plant is one of the most cold tolerant of the fuzzy succulent types. Because it survives at cold temperatures and in dry soil, it can be slightly invasive if planted in large garden beds. It tends to flower with small white and yellow flowers mainly in spring but it doesn’t have seasonal tendencies as much as other fuzzy leaf succulent varieties.

The Delosperma echinatum is simple to care for with minimal water requirements and a love of extensive sunlight. Be aware that sunburn is a possibility if there is a lot of direct sunlight.

Cacoon Plant (Seecio haworthii)

For a taste of something different, the cacoon plant is a pale blue colors fuzzy leaf succulent. It flowers from winter to early spring with large yellow flowers that look like large dandelions.

The Seccio haworthii is highly susceptible to root rot if overwatered. Make sure the soil is dry between watering. This is one of the fuzzy succulent types that definitely requires a lot of sun. Without several hours of sunlight, the cacoon plant can get incredibly leggy.

Pussy Ears (Cyanotis somaliensis)

Pussy ears is a fuzzy leaf succulent that also grows in a bushy or clustered appearance. While it requires extensive sunlight, it is prone to sunburn if exposed to too much direct sunlight.

The Cyanotis somaliensis flowers in clusters of purple and yellow flowers in the summer time. This fuzzy leaf succulent is easy to care for and easy to propagate for most homeowners.

How Do You Take Care of Fuzzy Succulents

Fuzzy succulent types are cared for almost exactly the same as other succulents. Water the soil deeply when you water it and cycle the environment so they can go through dormancy. The only difference is that those fuzzy leaves do not like to be wet since they rot so easily.

When you do water a fuzzy leaf succulent, you can water it from the bottom by setting it in a pool of water for a long time or you can carefully pour water on the soil. If you do get the fuzzy leaves wet, make sure to wipe them off because the water will pool on them and sit.

Why are Some Succulents Fuzzy

Some succulents grow “fur” on their leaves using specialized epithelial cells. These fuzzy succulent types have adapted to have fuzzy leaves that help to deter animals and insects from eating the leaves. It is a defense mechanism that is just as effective as the spines you see on some cacti.

The fuzzy exterior on these succulents also helps to prevent sunburn and water loss by filtering the light that hits the leaf surface and by trapping a layer of air next to the leaf.

Conclusion

You should definitely try one of these fuzzy succulent varieties! They offer so much variation in texture and shape that they can really make a beautiful garden. And even better, your kids can enjoy them too!