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Cobweb houseleek

Sempervivum arachnoideum, Crassulaceae

Sources last read 14 September 2026.

Not yet rated How forgiving it is has not been judged here yet.

Also called cobweb sedum.

Cobweb houseleek (Sempervivum arachnoideum), the whole plant.
Björn S..., CC BY-SA 2.0 · Wikimedia Commons

Toxicity is partly unassessed

  • Not assessed for cats. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
  • Not assessed for dogs. This plant is not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.
  • Not assessed for people. RHS publishes no harm statement for this plant. That is not a finding of safety: none of the sources read for this site gives an answer either way. Treat it as unknown.

What the sources say about its care

Sources file this plant under other names: Sempervivum arachnoideum AGM. Citations below point at the name its source uses.

Light
Full sun
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Water
Well-drained
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Humidity

No source read publishes a humidity figure for any plant on this site. What follows is general guidance for foliage plants.

Most foliage plants prefer more humidity than a heated room gives; succulents are named as an exception
Penn State Extension · read 13 September 2026
Temperature

How cold this tolerates, not what it prefers. No source read for this site publishes a preferred range for a plant indoors.

H7 — colder than -20°C
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Soil
Loam, Sand; pH Acid or Alkaline or Neutral
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to cats
Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Toxic to dogs
Not on the ASPCA list. That is not a finding of safety.
ASPCA · read 13 September 2026
Harmful to people
No statement of harm to people is published for this plant; that absence is not evidence it is safe.
RHS · read 13 September 2026

Routine care

Propagation
In spring sow seed or root offsets.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Pruning
Pruning is not needed.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Pests and diseases
Vine weevil can attack it. Disease risk: a rust.
RHS · read 13 September 2026

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About the plant

Sempervivum arachnoideum, the cobweb house-leek, is a species of flowering plant in the family Crassulaceae, native to European mountains, in the Alps, Apennines and Carpathians. Growing to 8 cm (3 in) tall by 30 cm (12 in) wide, it is a rosette-forming succulent perennial, valued in cultivation for its ability to colonise hot, dry areas via offsets.

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0 · read 13 September 2026

Native range
N. Spain to Alps and Appennini
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Pyrenees to Carpath.
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Climate
temperate
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Growth form
succulent perennial
World Checklist of Vascular Plants, June 2026 release, CC BY.
Kew WCVP · read 13 September 2026
Matforming (evergreen)
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Size
Height Up to 10 cm; spread 0.1-0.5 metres after 5–10 years
RHS · read 13 September 2026
Flowering
Flowers pink in summer
RHS · read 13 September 2026

Other Sempervivum

More of the Crassulaceae family

Plants with similar care

Sources

What this does not cover

The figures above are what published sources say, not measurements of the plant in your room. They say nothing about your pot size, your water, the season, or how far from the glass the plant stands, and those decide more than any figure here does.

Humidity has no species figure because no source read for this site publishes one, and the only temperature published for this plant is a cold floor. The simulator fills those gaps with general figures for its kind of plant, marked as general and listed on how we read sources. Where a toxicity row says the plant was not assessed, that is the absence of a finding and not a finding of safety.

If something is already wrong, the diagnosis tool asks about the soil, the window and the watering, which is where the answer usually is.