Houseplant · Crassulaceae
String of Buttons
Crassula perforata
Give it bright light and a dry, gritty mix, and this stacked succulent piles its leaves into cute little towers.
Bright indirect
50–77°F · 10–25°C
USDA 9–11
8–18 in · 20–45 cm
Overview
String of buttons picks up its name from the way those little triangular leaves stack up the stem, kind of like beads on a string. It's part of the Crassulaceae family, so it's a cousin of jade and stonecrop, and it keeps things compact indoors at 8 to 18 inches (20 to 45 cm) tall. That stacked, geometric look is the reason people fall for it, and good light is what keeps it looking sharp.
Worried it'll be fussy? It won't. This is an easy plant that really just wants strong light and someone who won't overwater it. The leaves store their own water, so the trick is letting the soil dry out all the way before the next drink. And in spring you might get small star-shaped flowers in pale yellow to white, which is a nice little bonus.
Give it space and light and the stems will branch and trail, spreading out to about 12 to 24 inches (30 to 60 cm) and tumbling over the side of a pot or basket. Let the light get too low, though, and those stems stretch and lean, swapping the tidy towers for a loose, leggy look. So keep it bright and it stays neat.
Care
The short version: bright light, a gritty fast-draining mix, and water only once the soil's bone dry. Keep it warm, back off the water in winter, and honestly it pretty much runs itself.
Light
Give it bright light, ideally bright indirect with a few hours of direct sun thrown in. Once it's hardened off it's fine in full sun, but stick it in a dim corner and the stems stretch out and that neat stacked shape kind of falls apart.
Water
Let the soil dry out completely before you water again, since the leaves are already holding their own supply. Ease way off in winter while it's dormant. It rots fast in soggy soil, so if you're not sure, just wait.
Soil
Pop it in a gritty cactus or succulent mix that drains in seconds, not minutes. A slightly acidic pH around 6.0 to 6.5 is ideal, and all that grit is what stops the roots from sitting in water.
Temperature
Keep it in the comfy zone of 50°F to 77°F (10°C to 25°C), which is normal room temperature for most homes. It can't handle frost, though, so bring it somewhere warm before it gets cold out.
Humidity
Here's an easy one: low household humidity is exactly what it likes, so there's no number to worry about. Dry air and decent airflow actually help keep rot from setting in.
Feeding
Only feed it in spring and summer while it's actively growing, using a diluted balanced or low-nitrogen succulent fertilizer. A light seasonal feed is plenty, and too much nitrogen just gives you soft, floppy growth.
Pruning
See any leggy, stretched stems? Pinch or trim them and the plant branches out and stacks up tighter. The bits you cut off root without any fuss, so don't toss them.
Repotting
Repot every 2 to 3 years, or whenever it's clearly crowding its pot, and spring's the time to do it. Keep an eye out for roots poking through the drainage holes, soil that dries out weirdly fast, or a top-heavy plant tipping at the edges.
Size & spacing
Indoors it gets to about 8 to 18 inches (20 to 45 cm) tall and trails out to roughly 12 to 24 inches (30 to 60 cm) wide. Give it room to spill over, or hang it up so those stacked stems can dangle.
Troubleshooting
Here's the thing: nearly every string of buttons problem comes back to light or water. Too little light and the stems stretch, too much water and the roots rot, and a sudden hit of strong sun burns the leaves. Find what matches below, and the fix is usually just a small tweak to your routine.
Yellow, mushy leaves and a soft base
Soft, see-through leaves and a dark, squishy base? That's root rot, and it comes from too much water sitting in soil that drains too slowly. Stop watering and let the whole thing dry out. If the base is already toast, tip the plant out, cut away the slimy brown roots, and repot the firm bits in fresh gritty mix, or just take cuttings from whatever's still healthy.
Fix:
- Stop watering and let soil dry fully
- Unpot, cut away rotted roots and stems, and repot healthy portions in fresh gritty mix
- Take cuttings from firm growth if the base is lost
Stems stretching out and losing their stacked shape
That's etiolation, which is just the plant reaching for light it isn't getting. The new growth shows up pale and stretched, and the whole stem tilts toward the closest window. So move it somewhere a lot brighter, then snip the stretched stems and root those cuttings to get a nice tight, stacked plant going again.
Fix:
- Move to a brighter spot with several hours of direct or very bright indirect light
- Prune stretched stems and root the cuttings to restart compact growth
Brown or reddish scorch marks on the leaves
Those patches are sunburn, and they show up when strong direct sun hits the plant before it's had time to adjust. You'll see the damage on whichever surfaces face the light, usually right after a move outside or to a hot window. Shift it back to bright indirect light, pull off the worst leaves, and ease it into full sun over a week or two.
Fix:
- Move to bright indirect light and remove badly damaged leaves
- Reintroduce direct sun gradually over one to two weeks
Toxicity
Good news if you've got pets: string of buttons is generally non-toxic and safe to have around. So if a curious cat, dog, or rabbit grabs a bite, they'll be okay. The leaves aren't food, they're just a nice-looking succulent, so there's no reason to encourage snacking, but you don't have to hide this one away either.
Safe for
People · Cats · Dogs · Horses · Rabbits · Livestock · Birds
Cats None
Cats are totally fine with string of buttons, so if one sneaks a nibble, there's nothing to worry about.
Dogs None
Got a dog? No problem here, since a chewed leaf isn't going to poison them.
Horses None
Horses aren't affected by this plant one bit.
Rabbits None
If a rabbit tastes a stem, it'll be fine, because there aren't any toxins in here that bother them.
Livestock None
Grazers like goats and sheep can be around it without any issues.
Birds None
Pet birds are safe near this plant too, with no known danger to them.
People None
It's non-toxic for people as well, though the leaves are really just an ornamental succulent, not something you'd want to eat.
Helpline numbers
United States
ASPCA Animal Poison Control: (888) 426-4435 (fee applies)
United Kingdom
Animal PoisonLine: 01202 509000 (fee applies)
Australia
Animal Poisons Helpline: 1300 869 738
Varieties
Most of what you'll spot for sale is the plain green species, but there's one named pick that's worth knowing about.
Crassula perforata 'Variegata'
When the light's bright, its leaves pick up creamy-yellow to pinkish variegation and even blush pink along the edges.
How to propagate
Want more string of buttons? Easy. One healthy plant hands you plenty of cuttings to fill new pots or pass some along to friends.
Stem cuttingsEasy
Spring through summer during active growth · 2 to 4 weeks to root
Stem cuttings are the easy way to get more of these. Just snip a stem segment in spring or summer, let the cut end callus over for a day or two, and then set it on or in gritty mix. Roots usually show up in about 2 to 4 weeks.
Leaf cuttingsModerate
Spring through summer · 4 to 8 weeks to root and sprout
You can also start one from a single leaf, though it takes more patience. Pull off a whole healthy leaf, let it callus, and lay it on dry succulent mix in spring or summer. Give it 4 to 8 weeks to root and sprout, and just know it's got a lower success rate than stem cuttings.
Myths
String of buttons must be poisonous because it looks like other toxic succulents.
Nope, Crassula perforata is generally treated as non-toxic and safe around cats and dogs. Sure, lots of succulents do carry toxins, so the family's reputation makes sense, but this one just isn't one of the risky ones. Keep the leaves as decoration instead of a snack, but a stray nibble really isn't a big deal.