Fenestraria aurantiaca (AKA Baby Toes)

I picked up a Fenestraria aurantiaca at Home Depot late this winter. I've seen these many times before, but for some reason, it looks like a plant I have a high chance of killing. I have a very green thumb in general, but I have my limits. So far, it has done well. I was excited that the specimen I bought had some visible buds.

Here is the plant label:

Those flower buds developed and opened into these beautiful cheery yellow blooms.

So far so good, but we'll see if I can ever get it to bloom again. I'll be happy if I can just keep this little guy alive.

Living Succulent Wreath

We recently hosted a class on making living succulent wreaths. Here are a few shots of the wreaths we made back in December to use as examples for our class in March. This wreath was made with Echeveria 'Black Prince' and 'Topsy Turvy', and Sedum 'Angelina'.

Each attendee made their own moss covered wreath using two wreath frames wired back-to-back, potting mix, sphagnum moss, and LOTS of paddle-wire. The wreath below was made with Echeveria 'Violet Queen' and 'Black Prince'.

We plant to sell our display wreaths at our upcoming plant sale fundraiser in May.

Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi variegata 'Aurora Borealis'

Here is yet another of the many succulents I purchased at Home Depot this winter. This one is Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi variegata 'Aurora Borealis'. I already have one of these at work, but I've had a lot of problems with that particular specimen. All of the leaf edges (specifically, where the white part is) keep burning and turning necrotic.  Maybe this is because this is a chimera? I'm hoping this new plant will have fewer problems.

Like other kalanchoes, this plant will eventually form little plantlets on the leaf margins.

And here's the tag. This specimen doesn't have as much of the pink coloration as my previous one, but then again, it has been sitting in a dim Home Depot warehouse for weeks. It'll probably color up soon.

Succulent Living Wreath-making Class!

I'm very excited to be teaching our upcoming Succulent Living Wreath class as part of our spring Curious Gardener series. We've been propagating echeveria and many other succulents this winter in preparation for this class. If you live in the Lansing, MI area, please consider signing up:

Start your garden season by creating a stunning succulent living wreath to hang on a door, fence, or set on a table. Succulents can thrive where little else will grow! Jessica Wright (Youth Education Coordinator) and Daedre McGrath (Annual Garden Manager) will take you step-by-step through the process of creating your own uniquely ornamental wreath. Each participant will be provided with all plants and materials needed to make a living wreath to take home. 

 $35 for Garden Members, $40 for Non-Members. 

Class Limit: 25

Register here: http://www.hrt.msu.edu/curious-gardener/

Unusual Blooms

Here are a few plants blooming in the greenhouse right now. This Peperomia caperata 'Purple Ripple' has flowers that look like a rat's tail.

 I've never seen a Euphorbia tirucalli bloom before, so I was surprised to discover this bloom the other day. Looks like there are a bunch more on the way in the cluster below the open bloom (in the foreground).

I'm pretty sure this is Mammillaria elongata, or Golden Star cactus. I was also surprised to find this little guy flowering.

Gasteria maculata

Here's a plant I've had for quite a while. It doesn't ever seem to grow, but I suppose it has been multiplying without me realizing it. I purchased this plant at least 5 years ago from the MSU Student Horticulture Association annual plant sale fundraiser.

I should make some divisions and propagate a few more of these in the future.

Adromischus cristatus 'Key Lime Pie'

Here's yet another specimen I picked up at Home Depot recently. I know absolutely nothing about Adromischus cristatus, but I couldn't resist the wavy-edged leaves. I've never seen anything like it before. The common name, Key Lime Pie refer to the crinkled-edge of pie crust. Another common name is Crinkle-leaf plant or Pie Crust plant.

You can't see them very well in this photo, but there do appear to be some form of spines of fine hairs near the center of the rosette.

And here's the info on the tag.

Opuntia subulata (AKA Eve's Needle)

Don't you just love it when there's random flotsam hot-glued to your plants?  I really don't know why they do this to cacti and succulents. This plant is bizarre enough on its own, it doesn't need a silly flower to catch your attention. I especially love the hot glue tendrils that they didn't even bother to pick off. In any event, I promptly pried off the flower once I got home from the store.

This is my new Opuntia subulata that I picked up at Home Depot for $3.48. It appears to be thornless and has weird "leaves" growing out of the stem. After looking up information on this plant, it looks like it might develop needles later on in development. I guess, we'll wait and see.

Here's the label on the pot, although I couldn't fit it all in one photo:

Kalanchoe tomentosa 'Chocolate Soldier'

Here is yet another one of the succulents I recently purchased at Home Depot. This fuzzy little guy was $3.33, on sale. I've grown the regular Kalanchoe tomentosa in the past, but I've never had this cultivar. I can't decide if I actually like this cultivar better...I think I just like things that are unusual. I remember having a lot of trouble with my last specimen of Kalanchoe tomentosa, so I hope this one will be easier to grow!

Here's the description from the propagator, Altman Plants:

"Kalanchoe tomentosa ‘Chocolate Soldier’, forms a shrubby plant with long oval shaped leaves densely covered in fuzzy felt. There are many cultivars with color variants, but the “true” tomentosa has dove gray leaves with reddish-chocolate margins and tips. This cultivar, ‘Chocolate Soldier’ has chocolate-colored leaves with nearly black markings at the tips. Very attractive, rich chocolate color provides an attractive accent with other plants. Flowers are small, but are quite uniquely attractive furry, bell-shapes that are golden ginger in color. Prefers bright light to full sun. Can be planted in patio plantings or even in garden beds in areas with temperate climes. Use porous soil with adequate drainage. Water thoroughly when soil is dry to the touch. Protect from frost."

And here's the pot label:

Crassula argentea 'Ogre Ears'

I recently purchased a specimen of Crassula argentea 'Ogre Ears' at Home Depot. Normally, I like to use plain terracotta pots, but this particular plant was calling out for something special. I've had this funky orange pot for quite a while, but I haven't used it for a few years. I'm pretty sure it's a garage sale or thrift store find.

This plant was named after the ogre's ears in the movie Shrek. The leaves are really cute and unusual. I also have a Crassula ovata 'Hobbit' that looks really similar. For the longest time, I thought they were the same plant.

The leaves of 'Hobbit' are more tube-shaped, sometimes with a little cup at the tip (see photo below). 'Ogre Ears', on the other hand, has a more pronounced, flared, saucer shape at the tip of the leaf. I think they do get mixed up a lot and are often mislabeled. But from what information I can find, they're not even the same species. To make things even more confusing, there's also a variety of Crassula ovata called 'Gollum', which looks exactly like "Hobbit'. If you know more about this, let me know!

Ogre Ears

Hobbit

Here's the label on the pot for more information:

Sedum adolphii 'Firestorm'

I'm loving this new sedum variety in my succulent collection. The red-orange coloration really makes it stand out. I'm hoping it will hold its color indoors.

One of my colleagues clued me in on the great selection of succulents currently at Home Depot. I've never seen so much variety at a big box store, and there were some truly unusual specimens available (more on these later). This plant came in a 3" pot and was on sale for $3.33 (normally $3.98).

Here's the description from the propagator, Altman Plants:

"Sedum adolphii, native to Mexico, forms rambling stems with waxy golden yellow leaves with pinkish-peach margins in bright light. Star-shaped white flowers. Excellent color accent in rock gardens and dish gardens. Porous soil with adequate drainage. Thrives in poor, sandy soils. Bright light to full sun. Water thoroughly when soil is dry to the touch. Protect from frost."

And here's the growing information given on the pot. I was pleasantly surprised that Home Depot was selling named varieties. Usually their indoor plants are just labeled "assorted succulent"  or "tropical foliage assortment'.

Curly Locks Cactus

Epiphyllum guatamalense var. monstrose...that's a quite a mouthful of Latin nomenclature! The common name, Curly Locks, is a little easier to handle, and describes the ringlet-like, curly leaves. The Latin name is pretty informative though and tells us that this is an epiphyte from Guatemala with monstrously deformed leaves. I was recently reading about this plant in Bizarre Botanicals and learned that the leaves of this variety curl due to a genetic anomaly. Also, interestingly, this plant can produce fruit and viable seeds without being pollinated!

A colleague gave me some stem cuttings back in September 2015. They rooted very easily and started to grow new side shoots after 2 or 3 months.

The cuttings I received also had a couple of ripe fruit that resembled miniature dragon fruits (I didn't think to take a photo). I decided to see if the seeds would germinate, so I squished them out of the sticky pulp, wiped the goopy seeds onto some potting soil, and put them under the misters in our propagation greenhouse. Within a week or two, the seeds started to germinate.

The seedlings seemed to stay in the cotyledon stage FOREVER, but eventually I started to see tiny stems poking through.

Almost 4 months later, they're starting to show their curly growth habit.

And I'm extremely excited to see that they've started to grow tiny side shoots at the base of the main stem. I recently moved these from the propagation house (lower light, higher humidity), into one of our production greenhouses (higher light, lower humidity). Here's hoping the higher light levels will jump-start their growth. I would really like to get these bulked up enough to offer them at our plant sale in May.

Faucaria 'Jaws'

Here's one of the cutest succulents I've ever seen: Faucaria 'Jaws'. These rooted cuttings were donated last fall to be used for some of our undergraduate horticulture classes. The leftovers have been potted up for our plant sale fundraiser coming up in May. They remind me a little of Venus fly traps and look like they could bite your finger off if you touch them (hence the name Jaws).

Although the spines look sharp, they're actually soft and bendable to the touch. I've never grown Faucaria before, so I'm looking forward to tracking it's progress. I have a feeling that these will form offsets and develop into a clump over time.

One of the plants I potted up for our collection has started to flower! It's the only one out of the whole batch that's flowering, so I must have given it some extra attention. Here's the tag, if you're interested: