Sharing a progress update of one of my favorite desk plants — Haworthia cooperi var. obtusa variegata.

This is a variant that can develop pink and orange tones when lighting and growth conditions are right.

When I first received it, it was still a seedling and the grower had been keeping it under relatively low light to help the roots establish. Because of that it arrived a bit leggy and stretched.

After about 6 months of growing, the changes are pretty noticeable:

• leaves are shorter, thicker, and wider
• the rosette is more compact and centered
• translucency is stronger
• stress colors started showing pink/orange tones

I attached some earlier photos for comparison so the change is easier to see.

Growing setup

I keep this plant on my work desk, mainly because I like being able to watch it grow every day.

The only challenge with desk growing is that I don’t want a bright grow light shining in my eyes while working. So I ended up running a reverse light schedule.

During working hours the light stays at very low brightness (just enough for viewing and below the baseline PPFD), and the main light cycle runs later.

The light I'm using is an ONF Mist O+, which lets you program time, brightness, and color temperature separately through the app, so it's easy to set a schedule like this.

Lighting details

Distance from light: ~4–5 inches
Peak intensity: ~200 PPFD (~13k lux measured)
Full intensity duration: 9–10 hours
Watering: about every 10 days

I know 200 PPFD is quite strong for many Haworthias, but several experienced growers suggested higher light levels for variegated obtusa types if you want to bring out stress coloration.

I started around 70%/ 120 PPFD and gradually increased it over a few months to avoid any light burn.

Overall I’m really happy with the progress.

Compared to when I first got it, the plant is now:

• much more compact
• leaves are fuller and thicker
• colors are starting to show nicely

Would love to see how others are growing cooperi / obtusa variants, especially variegated ones.