The long, eyelash-like marginal fringes of the Crassula alpestris subsp. alpestris sepals appear insect-like around the contrasting smoothness of the prettier coloured corolla surfaces protruding in the pointed buds. The ciliate margins are whitish, their thick papilla-like hairs at this stage neatly aligned, of about equal length and spacing.

The sepal bodies bulge in the centre, not quite keeled. The grains of sand sticking to them appear large, slightly magnified in the photo (Manning and Goldblatt, 1997; http://pza.sanbi.org).