jesmcreates

Breathtaking wild succulents.

×Puckia 'Sparkle'

The × at the beginning of this name means that it is not a true genus, but rather a cross between 2 different genera - in this case, Puya and Dyckia. Its parentage is said to include Puya laxa, Dyckia platyphylla, and Dyckia fosteriana. It would be hard to guess how these 3 might combine, but i find the flower color to be hard to square with this listed parentage. How did it get pale yellow petals, when those of P. laxa are blue-green fading to dark purple, while those of both Dyckia species are orange? I guess we will have to chalk it up to the mysteries of mixing genes. Puya and Dyckia are both in the Bromeliad Family and native to South America.

Plant of the Day

Saturday 11 April 202

In the ‘Life Before Flowers House’ of Cambridge Botanic Garden, UK, there is a display of a range of early-evolution, non-flowering land plants. These include the spore-bearing lycophytes, or clubmosses, with a basket of Huperzia  squarrosa (tassel fern). This epiphytic species grows in the rainforest canopy on moss-covered branches and requires humidity.

Aloe

Beschorneria yuccoides 'Flamingo Glow'

The genus Beschorneria is related to Agave and to Yucca, and these are now placed in the subfamily Agavoideae within the Asparagus Family. Beschoneria species occur in Mexico and Central America, and mostly they are found in forested places up in the mountains. Their leaves are like those of some yuccas, but generally they are soft and pliable rather than rigid. The dangling tubular flowers, often featuring reds and greens, are truly wonderful. This one is 'Flamingo Glow', a variegated cultivar of B. yuccoides.

Gasteria baylissiana

Gasteria is a genus in the family Asphodelaceae, and it is closely related to Aloe, although it has far fewer species and a much smaller area of occurrence (mostly South Africa). Gasteria baylissiana is a dwarf species, featuring pebbly-textured leaves and flowers with highly inflated bases. It comes from South Africa's Eastern Cape Province.

Pelargonium appendiculatum

Pelargonium is a large genus in the Geranium Family, with many of the species native to South Africa. This one is Pelargonium appendiculatum, notable for the soft texture provided by its highly dissected gray-green leaves, as well as its pale yellow flowers with red markings. It comes from north of Cape Town in South Africa's winter-rainfall region, and it goes dormant in the summer.