The plant has no leaf plates, the shoots take a globular shape at first and become faceted with time. The shoots grow singly, can bushy, varying in diameter from 5-12 cm. They are covered with greenish-brown, olive or grayish skin, the texture of which resembles that of a lizard or toad. There are varieties of silvery, pinkish hue. The flowers are dark maroon in diameter = 1.5 cm.