Family:  Asphodelaceae
Scientific name:  Haworthia truncata
Common name:  Horse's teeth

Native of:  Little Karoo region at the far east side of Western Cape Province, South Africa

Greenhouse location:  Room D

Its rows of squarish, truncated leaves has earned Haworthia truncata the nickname of "horse's teeth." The leaves of this small plant are arranged in rows.

Note the translucent appearance of the end of the H. truncata leaf. Referred to as the "leaf window" or "epidermal window," the structure lets light enter for photosynthesis. The "leaf window" makes it possible for H. truncata in the wild to grow half submerged in the ground with only its leaf tips above the soil, thus protecting the plant from desiccation by winds and heat while it absorbs light.

Many of the succulent plant species with "leaf windows" are native to the arid regions of South Africa. Some "leaf windows" contain epidermal tissue that may function as water storage. An absence of stomata (pores found in plant tissue that control gas exchange between the plant and its environment) in the translucent tissue prevents water loss.

Small, white, tubular flowers form along a slender stem that emerges from between the leaves of H. truncata.