A Window into the World of the Baby Toes Plant

Baby toes. No matter when you last put a pair of tiny socks on them, they are surely in your memory as incredibly cute. And the Baby Toes plant, Fenestraria aurantiaca, can be described in the same way. This little succulent is cute as can be. But “cute” does not even hint at the rough and tumble strength of this plant which can withstand harsh and dry conditions without missing a step. Fenestraria aurantiaca is a fun and easy-growing plant, with everything it needs to survive harsh conditions built right in.

So now, baby toes…. On little humans, these sweet things are not at all elongated, are especially adorable when viewed from underneath, and are only slightly graduated in length as they go from pinky toe to big toe. Sure enough, the plant that has so many parallels to them also has “toes” that are all just about the same length, grow up from the ground in such a way that we see the toe-pad or underside of each one as soon as we look at the plant, and have an adorable little stubbiness to their ends. Fenestraria aurantiaca, the Baby Toes plant, has short and succulent columnar foliage that terminates in small nubs with flattened tops. The succulent foliage is a peaceful green, nothing too bright and jarring.

At the top of each of the stubby and flattened "toes" on the plant, there is a plate that is even lighter in color than the rest of the foliage. This plate has a watery-clear look to it. This is where things get interesting with Fenestraria aurantiaca: This top-plate can actually be a considered a window on each and every “toe” of foliage, allowing the Baby Toes plant to take in sunlight.

Now, once you hear this about the Baby Toes plant, I suspect your mind may travel back to Latin classes in high school, as the plant’s botanical name begins to make sense. Do you remember the term, fenestra? My beloved Latin teacher would always point out parts of the classroom using Latin terms, so this term meaning “window” got embedded in my mind. These clear top-plates on this unusual looking succulent are of utmost importance to the Baby Toes plant. 

A Window into the Way the Baby Toes Plant Grows

The Baby Toes plant, also called the Window Plant, hails from Southern Africa. In its original environment, with dry soil blowing up against it relentlessly in harsh and arid conditions, this succulent does not always have the luxury of showing all its foliage for photosynthesis. Stubby and cute as it is, it can get covered quickly with gravely, sandy soil, right up to its “windows”. But these “windows” do unbelievable work in ensuring that Fenestraria aurantiaca takes in the filtered sunlight it needs for photosynthesis. Those watery-clear panes… once you know about them, you will check them out immediately and with awe when you see a Baby Toes plant.

Growing Fenestraria Aurantiaca at Home

While a plant so unusual could be difficult to tend, it is just the opposite in the case of the Baby Toes plant. Fenestraria aurantiaca needs very little in the way of specialized care. The key is to keep in mind that water can become its only real enemy. Excessive water, which translates to very little water for this self-sufficient plant which needs far less than average hydration to keep going, will blister and scar the exterior of the succulent toe-like foliage. If too much water is applied, or if drainage is not excellent enough to get the plant to dry quickly between waterings, Fenestraria aurantiaca will suffer. If you are a forgetful waterer, watering only once a week or every other week, this plant will love you. You’ll naturally keep those “toes” dry, and this is what the plant wants.

Use the ever-helpful “windows” on Fenestraria aurantiaca to get a good sense of what your plant needs. The clear panes will wrinkle if you have gone too far in holding back on watering. If they look smooth and healthy, you are doing nothing wrong. Highly diluted liquid fertilizer can be applied every once in a great while, good sunlight through a south-, west-, or east-facing window must be found, and a brief dormancy should be expected.

Watch for tiny offshoot plants that you can re-pot in a cactus mix or another medium with excellent drainage. Some will make it, and others will be hard to grow in this manner. But propagation of the Baby Toes plant can also be done through division. Then, on your mature plant, watch for something incredible: Just as human babies do some hysterically funny things, like budding comedians, the Baby Toes plant puts forth quite a few quite large, quite gorgeous flowers. The flowers which look something along the lines of Ice Plant blooms sit proudly atop the “toes”, towering over them and really showing off in a bright “look at me” sort of way. Now, these flowers are attractive and not funny, per se, but it is the unexpected sight of them atop all the “toes” that gets me.

The Baby Toes plant: cute, strong, self-sufficient, fascinating, even funny. There may be a dozen plants you would like to add to your collection, but try to find a place for this one. And when you get it, gaze into those fascinating “windows” for a look into what Nature can achieve.