If you are an Orchidaceae lover and yet want easy-care plants, then here we’ve listed the best succulents that look like orchids for you!
Imagine a beautiful collection where you have tropical orchids on one side and drought-tolerant succulents on the other. Quite impressive, isn’t it? But what if you have the best of both worlds in each single specimen? If you think that’s impossible, check out these succulents that look like orchids!
Succulents That Look Like Orchids
1. Parachute Plant
Botanical Name: Ceropegia sandersonii
Originating from South Africa, the Parachute plant has green and white parachute-shaped flowers that look like tiny lanterns or orchid blooms. It’s a vining succulent often grown in hanging baskets.
Even called the Umbrella plant and Fountain flower plant, its stems can grow up to 6–12 feet long with heart-shaped foliage.
This slow grower prefers full sun with some shade and usually blooms during the warmer months—each flower lasting a few days like an orchid’s brief show.
2. Carrion Flower
Botanical Name: Stapelia gigantea
The Carrion Flower earns its name from its large star-shaped flowers with a velvet-like texture and a foul smell, much like rotting flesh.
This is actually a mimetic trait to attract carrion flies, the pollinators for this plant. When growing in a garden, remember to plant it far away from the home and in pots, in which it grows quite well.
3. Starfish Flower
Botanical Name: Orbea variegata
It is quite easy to get confused between the above Stapelia and the Orbea. But though they belong to the stapeliad group and even showcase the same type of foul-smelling, exotic-looking flowers, these genera are quite distinct.
The differences are quite specific and you will only understand them not just by the size of the flowers (Stapelia flowers are larger and hairy) but also by the stems, where Orbea has smooth, hairless stems.
In terms of care needs, they both require full or dappled sunlight, well-draining soil, and minimal watering.
4. String of Nickels
Botanical Name: Dischidia nummularia
For all those who love spilling succulents, this charming epiphytic succulent has small, round, coin-like leaves that trail gracefully from hanging pots or mounted displays. While it doesn’t produce large, showy flowers, it mimics the growing style of orchids, especially epiphytic ones like Dendrobium or Oncidium.
It loves humidity, bright indirect light, and occasional misting—very much like an orchid’s care routine.
In the wild, it grows clinging to trees, just like many orchids do.
5. Wax Plant
Botanical Name: Hoya carnosa
Loved for its thick, glossy leaves and sweet-smelling star-shaped flowers, this one easily passes off as an orchid lookalike. The blooms appear waxy or porcelain-like, with a lovely fragrance in the evenings.
It climbs and trails and grows best with bright, indirect light and well-drained soil. This makes it a perfect low-maintenance choice for those who love the elegance of orchids.
Some types, like Hoya pubicalyx and Hoya lacunosa, offer even more orchid-like blooms.
6. String of Hearts
Botanical Name: Ceropegia woodii
This delicate trailing succulent is popular for its dainty, heart-shaped leaves that hang down like a waterfall. While the flowers are small, tubular shapes rather than showy, the cascading vines and dainty foliage are quite similar to that of orchids.
It thrives in bright, indirect light and dry conditions, and it’s a favorite for hanging baskets or shelf displays.
Occasionally, it produces tiny purple flowers that resemble miniature orchid tubes.
7. Lifesaver Plant
Botanical Name: Huernia zebrina
To finish off this list, we have this gorgeous succulent that is also often called the “Little Owl”! Though called the “Lifesaver cactus”, it is not a cactus at all! It is usually small and has fleshy stems.
Still, the most interesting characteristic of this plant is its distinctive star-shaped flowers, which have a glossy, rubbery ring at the center, resembling a “lifesaver” candy.
It’s mostly the colors and exotic appearance that make this flower look like an orchid from afar.
And those were all the beautiful succulents that look like orchids! Which ones were your favorite? Let us know in the comments below!
