Pelargonium crithmifolium has thick, knobbly succulent stems and deeply divided, lobed leaves that suggest arid habitat. There is a yellowish smooth and peeling bark on the stems.

The plant grows to 1 m, in some harsher parts only half that. The white flowers are 1,5 cm in diameter, with short pink or red lines at the bases of the upper pair of petals. The flower grows on a long stalk and has a notable calyx tube at the base. The flowering season extends beyond the wet winter.

The plant’s water conservation capacity equips it for life in its geographical distribution in nature, which ranges across Namibia, the Richtersveld, Namaqualand, the western Karoo and Little Karoo… regions with climate that can cause stress from drought and temperature extremes to those that live there. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; Le Roux, et al, 2005; http://redlist.sanbi.org).