Kalanchoe

A compact succulent perennial from Madagascar, grown as a flowering pot plant for its dense heads of small red, orange, yellow, pink or white flowers held above thick, glossy, scallop-edged leaves. It is toxic: the ASPCA lists Kalanchoe as toxic to dogs and cats, and NC State Extension warns that eating it can sicken people and can kill pets. The RHS calls it flaming Katy, and NC State Extension and UF/IFAS also know it as Christmas kalanchoe. It is a short-day plant: NC State and the Missouri Botanical Garden say it sets flower buds only after about six weeks of 14-hour nights, so a plant kept in a lit room may not bloom again. Outside USDA zones 10 and warmer it lives indoors.

Kalanchoe tomentosa is a slow-growing, evergreen succulent subshrub endemic to the rocky granite outcrops of east-central Madagascar, where it tolerates seasonal drought in arid and semi-arid scrubland. In gardens it excels as a tactile, silver-felted container or houseplant prized entirely for its velvety, brown-tipped foliage; it rarely flowers in cultivation. The honest catch is toxicity: the plant is toxic to cats and dogs and mildly toxic to humans, so it must be kept out of reach of pets and children - making it a poor choice for households with either.