There was so much of this jade throughout the garden as well. Cousin Connie kept calling it Elephant Foot. She was close. ELEPHANT FOOD. The attractive, evergreen succulent can grow to eight feet or more, in its natural environment. It has small, circular, fleshy, bright green foliage on reddish-brown stems.

The leaves of these plants are edible and have a tart flavor. In its native habitat, the plant is heavily browsed and eaten by elephants, wild game, and Denny... I mean tortoises. Elephants eat parts of the plant, and spit out the leaves and seeds, which help to propagate the plant. It produces pink, star-shaped flowers in late winter to early spring, but rarely blooms in the southwest desert. The flowers are a good source of nectar for birds and insects.