Tylecodon is a genus of succulent plants in the Crassulaceae family. Until the late 1970s all these plants were included in the genus Cotyledon, but in 1978 Dr Helmut Tölken of the South Australian Herbarium split them off into a genus of their own. The new name: “Tylecodon” was chosen as an anagram of the earlier name Cotyledon. Tylecodons generally lose their leaves during summer. From mid-autumn to early winter the new leaves are borne in spiral arrangements at the branch tips. The Tylecodon genus is very varied, ranging from dwarf succulents such as Tylecodon reticulatus to Tylecodon paniculatus, which may exceed two metres in height. They all well suited to being raised in rockeries and in pots. When grown in small pots their height can be controlled and they make interesting looking natural bonsai.

Tylecodon cacalioides, previously known as Cotyledon cacalioides and Cotyledon fergusoniae, is a rare caudiciform South African endemic species found in the Eastern Cape and Western Cape. This small shrub has thick, knobbly stems branching towards their top and forming a dense clump. The stem will grow up to 4cm in diameter and 35cm height. The thick yellowish branches have peeling bark and during the growing season, grey-green lanceolate leaves curving upwards and with a slight groove on the upper surface. The long flowering stem carries a cluster of tubular, sulphur-yellow flowers with spreading petal tips.