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Monocarpic perennial of the Saxifragaceae family, section Ligulatae, found in the Alps, the Jura, and the northern Apennines. It grows on moist limestone rocks, dripping walls, and shaded rocky banks, generally between 500 and 2,000 meters altitude.
It forms a solitary, flattened, large, and fleshy rosette composed of oval to spatulate leaves, from glaucous green to medium green, sprinkled with white dots corresponding to the hydathodes. These calcareous deposits, clearly visible on the leaf surface, give it a characteristic appearance that immediately distinguishes it from other encrusted saxifrages, the dots remaining isolated rather than forming a continuous border as in S. longifolia or S. crustata.
At the end of its growth, which can extend over several years, it produces a floral stem 20 to 40 cm high bearing a dense panicle of flowers in a bright coppery-orange to salmon-orange, a color quite unusual in the genus. In its natural habitat, its flowering extends from June to August. After flowering, the mother rosette dies, but the plant generally produces lateral daughter rosettes.
It requires a calcareous, fresh to moist substrate, well-drained without being dry, in shade or partial shade. It does not tolerate dry heat or full summer sun. Suitable for moist rock gardens, limestone walls, and cool woodland gardens.