The Cape snowdrop is a tiny perennial with a delicate appearance. It grows from a tuber and may form small dense clumps through suckering.

The plants in picture are thriving here on a damp southerly slope near Greyton on land that had burnt about a year before. The tubers, not destroyed by the fire, are now prospering from winter rain. Nutrients obtained from the ashes and the removal of some large shrubs that previously dominated the space, contribute to the good life. It is said that the plant reaches heights of 20 cm in favourable conditions, although this is probably not often observed.

The distribution of Crassula capensis lies from Clanwilliam and the Cape Peninsula in the west to around the southern Cape town of Riversdale in the east. Rocky slopes, even on Table Mountain where damp spots among the crags are seasonally plentiful, hide these shy surprises.

The Afrikaans common name of skaamblommetjie (shy little flower) is appropriate due to the plant\'s small size, choice of a shady, hidden abode and flower nodding (Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; Manning, 2007).