Sempervivum leaf edges

Art//Science

The following images represent a handful of Sempervivum characteristics. Sempervivum evolved in response to extreme climatic changes at high altitudes where food and water are scarce. According to where the plants are naturally geographically located, the plants mutated over time to develop numerous and precise survival characteristics to survive freezing winters, hot summers, and the vivacious appetites of mammals and insects.  

Some plants are recognisable by hair filaments growing as soft down covering the leaves and stems and other varieties have eccentric tufts and swirls often sometimes covering the entire plant. Others have spikes covering their leaves, others vary between supple nodes protruding from the leaf tips, others have vicious jagged edges and others are completely bald!