9 Flowering Succulent Plants That’ll Wow You With Their Blooms

Moss Rose

The moss rose (Portulaca grandiflora) is an annual succulent that’s primarily grown outdoors since it has a creeping habit that provides beautiful ground cover. “They are a gardener’s favorite for highlighting bare spots, primarily in limited spaces like vertical gardens, windows, or hanging baskets, due to their dramatic weeping vines studded with stunning flowers,” notes Melvin Cubian, a gardening expert with PlantIn. 

It’s not technically a rose, he adds, but it does produce a similar showy flower alongside its succulent stems. He says that many varieties are also created to showcase numerous flowers with different colors all at once, which usually bloom in the warm season and continuously till the first autumn frost. 

String of Pearls

In its native environment (Cape Province), string of pearls (Senecio rowleyanus) grows on the ground, forming a mat by crawling over and under other plants. In the non-wild, though, you’ll find these beauties grown in hanging baskets with their foliage cascading over the edge. “Its modified leaves are small, pea-like spheres—they’re engineered to store water, minimize water consumption, and facilitate plant survival in dry climates,” explains Lisa Root, owner of Root Houseplants. 

These plants bloom only once per year, but typically with a few flowers per plant that give off a spicy, cinnamon-like scent. “Its flowers are round and resemble pom poms; they are white with yellow anthers and red stamens,” Root says.

Queen of the Night

The queen of the night (Epiphyllum oxypetalum) lives up to her dramatic name, blooming only once per year on a single evening, says Evan Torchio, founder at Tree Menders. These cactus blooms are quite enchanting with their oversized, fragrant white petals. “They are worth the wait,” Torchio says. “ To keep the plant happy, give it bright, indirect sunlight and water it regularly, letting the soil dry slightly between waterings.”

Hindu Rope

For a tropical flowering succulent option check out the Hoya carnosa compacta, which flowers nearly year-round. “There are several variations with different leaf shapes and color patterns,” says JP Varvarigos, 3rd generation florist and owner of Wellington Florist. He’s particularly fond of a boutique variety called “Hindu Rope” that’s over 20 years old. It produces a beautiful pink flower among the plant’s twisting leaves. 

Baby Jade

This popular succulent (Crassula ovata) has thick and glossy jade-colored leaves with a tree-like silhouette. It’s a great indoor option, and some people believe that keeping it around helps usher in good luck and prosperity. In the winter, it produces a small, star-shaped flower in either pink or white that contrasts beautifully against the plant’s green leaves.

Old Lady Cactus

It’s a funny name, but the old lady cactus (Mammillaria hahniana) is called such because of its soft, white, fuzzy hairs that grow all over the plant. “After long periods of drought or cool season, you will be rewarded by its magenta multi-petalled flowers, crowning the tip of each mature stem,” Cubian says. He adds that the plant also starts to create a clumped, “eggs in a basket” sort of appearance and that you can re-pot each “egg.”

Widow’s-thrill

Another variety of flowering succulent is the Kalanchoe, which comes in about 125 varieties. “The one with the most flowers is the widow’s-thrill, or Kalanchoe blossfeldiana plant,” Varvarigos says. “It’s also known as flaming Katy, Christmas Kalanchoe, and Madagascar widow’s-thrill.” He says the plant produces a lush bouquet of blooms that come in a range of colors, including red, orange, pink, yellow, and white, depending on the species.

Living Stones

Living Stones (Lithops), which resemble an array of juicy, colorful pebbles—are a wonder even without blooms. Each plant has two thick and fleshy leaves that grow opposite each other and very low to the ground. Come autumn, a delicate, daisy-like flower emerges from the fissure. This plant slowly spreads sideways by producing clusters of nearby pups and can be grown either indoors or outdoors.

Zebra-Striped Lifesaver

This flowering succulent plant produces spiky conical stems that grow in clumps that stretch up and outward. In the spring through summer, the Huernia zebrina produces almost cartoonish-like flowers. “The rubbery petals present themselves in yellow, streaked with brown to purplish lines, resembling a zebra pattern, with central brown and glossy ring,” explains Cubian. Unlike most succulent species that have a hankering for direct sunlight, this species thrives best in shady spots or inside.