Plant care
Dorothy's Living Stonestemperature & humidity
Lithops dorotheae
More about dorothy's living stones
Ideal temperature for dorothy's living stones
Aim for 10–38°C (50–100°F) on the thermostat and you've handled the easy part. The hard part is the half-metre around the plant: window glass that drops to near-freezing on a January night, a radiator pumping out hot dry air, a draught from an opened front door. Move the plant 30 cm and you've usually fixed the problem. Below roughly 10°C the damage starts — soft blackened patches, translucent leaves, sometimes overnight.
Cold tolerance & winter care
Dorothy's Living Stones is frost-tender (USDA 10-11, RHS H1b). It cannot survive a frost, so in most of the US and UK it lives indoors year-round or summers outside and comes back in well before the first autumn frost — once nights drop toward 10-12°C is the cue, not the first frost warning. Acclimate it over a week when moving between indoors and out so the leaves do not shock.
Humidity for dorothy's living stones
Dorothy's Living Stones sits happiest at around 10–30% relative humidity. Requires low ambient humidity. Standard indoor conditions are fine if the room is ventilated. Avoid placing near steam sources or in rooms with consistent humidity above 50%. Do not mist the leaves. The usual low-humidity tell is crisp brown leaf tips and edges while the soil moisture is fine — a sign the air, not the watering, is the problem. If you need to raise it, the reliable methods are grouping plants together, standing the pot on a tray of damp pebbles (the pot above the waterline, never in it), or running a small humidifier in winter when indoor heating dries the air most. Misting is the least effective — it raises humidity for minutes, not hours.
Dorothy's Living Stones temperature & humidity — frequently asked questions
What temperature is best for dorothy's living stones?
Dorothy's Living Stones grows best between 10–38°C (50–100°F). Keep it out of cold draughts, off freezing windowsills in winter, and away from the hot dry air directly above radiators — the extremes matter far more than the average room temperature.
How cold can dorothy's living stones tolerate?
Dorothy's Living Stones starts to suffer below roughly 10°C. It is frost-tender and will be damaged or killed by a frost, so bring it indoors once nights fall toward 10-12°C.
What humidity does dorothy's living stones need?
Dorothy's Living Stones prefers about 10–30% relative humidity. Requires low ambient humidity. Standard indoor conditions are fine if the room is ventilated. Avoid placing near steam sources or in rooms with consistent humidity above 50%. Do not mist the leaves.
How do I raise humidity for dorothy's living stones?
Group it with other plants, stand the pot on a tray of damp pebbles (kept above the waterline), or run a small humidifier in winter. Misting only helps for a few minutes, so it is the weakest option for a plant that genuinely needs more humidity.
Can dorothy's living stones live outside?
Dorothy's Living Stones is rated for USDA zone 10-11 and RHS hardiness H1b. Outside that range it must come indoors before the first frost — treat any outdoor stint as a summer holiday, not a permanent home.
More dorothy's living stones care
In the UK? Keeping dorothy's living stones warm in a UK home covers the radiator, single-glazing and heating-season humidity angle. Temperature and humidity are one piece. See the full dorothy's living stones care guide, its cold-hardiness guide, and watering schedule — humidity and watering problems are easy to confuse.