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 singularis, previously known as Cotyledon singularis, is sometimes referred to as a bizarre freak of nature. It produces one massive fleshy leaf, up to 25cm in diameter, which is purple on the underside while the upper surface is green and covered with velvet hair. The leaf dries up as summer approaches. The plant is leafless over summer, just the tuberous root (caudex) waiting for autumn to come before pushing out one single leaf again. It is a rare caudiciform succulent from Namibia where it is found in a small area of Rosh Pinah growing in black limestone. In its natural environment it receives little water during winter and none during summer.