xGraptosedum 'Francesco Baldi'

This is amongst the 'survivors'.  With suggestions from crassulaceae discussion group, i think it is probably xGraptosedum 'Francesco Baldi'. This is a cross between Graptopetalum paraguayense and Sedum pachyphyllum. It is unlikely that i can ever get confirmation from its flowers; the heat tolerant parent G. paraguayense never flowers here in Singapore.  The leaf shape and taller growth comes from S. pachyphyllum. G. paraguayense contributes to the broader leaves and pinkish coloration.  This is widely offered for sale without label and occasionally can be labelled 'Pink Beauty'.

xGraptosedum 'Bronze'

This brightly colorful and beautiful succulent was purchased from Home Depot, Fairfax, VA.  It was amongst a nice range of cacti and succulents supplied by Altman Plants.  After 7 months of acclimatizing in Singapore, 1 out of 4 of my selection perished.  This is one of the survivors. I had no idea what it is. My initial guesses are Sedum, xGraptoveria and xPachyveria.  Fortunately, there are many amateur experts in the succulent hobbyist discussion groups where i can approach to get identification help.  In this case, i posted photographs to this the crassulaceae discussion at yahoogroups.  General consensus has it identified as xGraptosedum 'Bronze' which is an intergeneric cross of Graptopetalum paraguayense and Sedum stahlii.  G. paraguayense from lowland Veracruz, Mexico passes on heat tolerance genetics while S. stahlii deepens or darkens the coloration.

Kalanchoe longiflora

This very heat and wet tolerant species comes from KwaZulu-Natal area of South Africa. The new leaves are strongly covered with thick white bloom which "crack" like fine china.  I had this species for many years and it has not flowered once. Till this day i don't know provenance of this species in Singapore. Have nevered seen it amongst dutch or local (Cameroun Highlands) cactus & succulents imports. I took a cutting on a planter outside someone's house next to the road. It was rambling on the surface rocky soil of a very root bounded planter.  Those are the days without internet and online catalogue.  Your plant sources are nearer home... hoping that your regular neighbourhood nursery bring in some interesting stuff. It would have been whiter have i kept it under full shelter, as it has proven to be wet hardy... i had to give the premium shelter space to other more sensitive succulents.  Here's a the view from the top:

Huernia kennedyana

Was very pleasantly surprised this morning when i saw my small Huernia kennedyana in flower. I had to photograph it before before the rain clouds blocked out the nice morning sun! Didn't even got a chance to preview my snaps as i had to rush to work. This is a very distinctive Huernia. The stems are very short and almost globular. For scale, the plant is in a 2" pot. It will surely take a while before it matt-over the square pot. First described by John Lavranos and is found around Cradock area, East Cape, South Africa.

Plectranthus socotranus

The only member of Plectranthus that i knew until recently is P. amboinicus (Indian Mint, French Thyme, Soup Mint etc). This is a genus in which many species have aromatic or pungent leaves. P. socotranus is not an exception. It has very strong scented leaves and it smells like "Vicks". You don't have to bruise or crush the leaves to release the smell. A mere touch or brush against the roundish felted succulent leaves will release the scent. The scent smells like a mixture of camphor, eucalyptus and menthol and it will stay on your fingers.

The species epithlet suggests it comes from the island of Socotra off the Arabian Peninsular. The write-up from New or noteworthy species from Socotra and Abd al Kuri (Part of the Hooker's Icones Plantarum) recorded that it is found on the limestone plateau above 460m, being fairly abundant and in open patch amongst Croton thickets. Despite its hill habitat, it takes kindly to our warm lowland conditions and some exposure to tropical rain.

Kalanchoe somaliensis

There are many more species of kalanchoe that are more amendable or more correctly adaptable to continuously hot and humid tropical environment. K. somaliensis is one of them. Recent literature has placed it under one of the numerous synomyns of K. marmorata; in flower it may be a K. marmorata, so far it has not flowered. From the heat tolerance point of view, this is definitely not a typical K. marmorata. I had given at least 2 tries to K. marmorata from 2 different sources hoping to get a warm tolerant clone. They quickly succumbed to the weather and rightly so coming from 1200-1400 m montane zone of East Africa. K. somaliensis does have some semblance to K. marmorata; imagine the later without purple marbled markings and more pruinose. It probably comes from a warm area and dry habitat. The leaves develop even more intense white-blue pruinose under full sun as protection against sunburn. This clone comes to me from France.

Kalanchoe synsepala

This is one of the more unusual Kalanchoe being the only species that produces stolon like strawberry. It is widely distributed in central plateau of Madagascar. We do have a regular K. synsepala clone that has been grown here in Singapore for a long time. It is a vigorous plant but without the cool and change in the daylight hours of changing seasons, it does not flower. Interestingly, this particular clone from the lowlands of southern Madagascar is more amendable to hot tropical conditions and it rewards me with an inflorescence. The plant is redder and the leaf lamina is covered with fine felt whereas typical species has smooth leaf. I thought the flowers would have expired when i went away for 2 weeks, but it turned out to be very lasting.

Orostachys japonica

Sempervivum? No, Sempervivum is not found beyond Asia minor and the Caucasus. Other genera of crassulaceae from Japan are Orostachys, Sedum i think this is an Orostachys. This compact rosetted succulent was found growing on rocks near the sea at Utoro, Hokkaido, Japan. Orostachys are biennials - they die after flowering in the 2nd year. The intense red and extreme clustering of leaves in the top photo is an indicative sign of emerging stem inflorescence in autumn. There are few accompanying plants in the harsh rocky habitat besides Phedimus kamtschaticus (Sedum aizoon ssp kamtschaticum), Artemisia sp and some annual members of the compositae. I can imagine the succulent rosette of leaves buried under at less a foot of snow! Based on internet photos and description from Flora of China, i think it is O. japonica. It is a widespread species from Eastern China extending to Japan, Korea and Russia.

Phedimus kamtschaticus

This picture was taken in-situ when i went on a 2 weeks vacation (. No, i did not travel to an exotic place called Kamchatka in the far eastern Russia. It was taken at Utoro near Shiretoko national park at Hokkaido, Japan. Frankly, i never heard of this small town. It serves as a getway to the Shiretoko national park and cruiseliners take tourists out to tip of Shiretoko peninsula (Cape Shiretoko) from this point. It is growing on coastal rocks around cruiseliner pier in full sun. I lift this description from Flora of China 8: 218–221. 2001.

Phedimus kamtschaticus (Fischer) ’t Hart in ’t Hart & Eggli,
Evol. & Syst. Crassulac. 168. 1995.
堪察加费菜 kan cha jia fei cai
Sedum kamtschaticum Fischer & C. A. Meyer, Index Sem. Hort. Petrop. 7: 54. 1840;
Aizopsis kamtschatica (Fischer) Grulich; Sedum aizoon Linnaeus subsp. kamtschaticum (Fischer) Fröderström.
Herbs perennial. Rootstock branched, thickened, woody. Stems mostly simple, ascending, 15–40 cm, sometimes papillate. Leaves alternate or opposite, rarely 3-verticillate; leaf blade oblanceolate, spatulate, or obovate, 2.5–7 × 0.5–3 cm, base narrowly cuneate, margin apically
sparsely serrate to crenate, apex obtuse-rounded. Inflorescence terminal. Flowers unequally 5-merous. Sepals lanceolate, 3–4 mm, base broad, apex obtuse. Petals yellow, lanceolate, 6–8 mm, abaxially keeled, apex acuminate and mucronate. Stamens 10, slightly shorter than petals; anthers orange. Nectar scales subquadrangular, minute. Carpels erect, equaling or slightly shorter than petals, adaxially gibbous, base connate for ca. 2 mm. Follicles stellately
horizontal. Seeds brown, obovoid, minute. Fl. Jun–Jul, fr. Aug–Sep.
Rocky slopes; 600–1800 m. Hebei, Heilongjiang, Jilin, Liaoning, Nei Mongol [Japan,
Korea, Russia].

It is so neat and nicely position that on first impression i thought it was planted. Anyway, there are annuals in planted troughs. More of this species growing on other less accessible rocks around that area. They survived winter dying down to a rootstock. I reckon the place will be snow covered for at least 4-5 mths.

Pure Beauty - Habenaria myriotricha/medusae

This is a jaw-dropping beauty from Laos or Thailand. I've seen it once in Bangkok and that beautiful memory stayed with me. Recently, i was very lucky to purchase what i suspected is a H. myriotricha plant from a local orchid nursery. They had imported some plants from Thailand in preparation for a plant exhibition cum trade fair. Keeping my fingers crossed... and it turned out to the plant of my dreams.

According to Seidenfaden, there are 3 species - H. medusae from northern Sumatra, H. myriotricha from Thailand/Laos & H. beccarii from Sulawesi. H. medusae and H. myriotricha are almost identical while H. beccarii has broader and shorter fringes on the side lobes. Knowing that my plant originated from Thailand i'm sticking to H. myriotricha. The inflorescences is erect and measured 40-50 cm tall from ground. Each flower is about 3 cm across, with long graceful thin fringes on the sidelobes and a long spur.

Again this is a deciduous terrestial from monsoonal belt - Indochina, northern Sumatra, Sulawesi with a very distinct dry/wet season. When the plant is growing, water generously and feed it with dilute fertilizer regularly to promote strong growth and flowers. After flowering, once leaves start to yellow reduce watering as the plant prepares for dormancy by withdrawing starch from the leaves and stem to form the tuber. Slowly, water less and less. Once the tuber is fully form, it can be kept dry for about 3-4 mths.

Eulophia andamanensis

Chances are you can find pseudobulbs of this species at general herbal, tuber, & bulb store at Bangkok's renowned Chatuchak market. Eulophia andamanensis is a widely distributed species throughout Thailand, into Indochina (Laos, Cambodia, Vietnam), Myanmar (Tenasserim) and also Northern Malaysia. My gut feel is it can adapt and spread on disturbed forest or grasslands just like Spathoglottis plicata occupying degraded land in Malaysia and Singapore.

Four or five years ago this guy in my neighbourhood gave me a fistful of pseudobulbs from his sad rotting clump. It thrives under general succulent care ie. if the plant is in leaf i water, else i don't. Over the course of 2 years, the pseudobulbs spread to fill two 12 inch pots. Typically, it stays dormant for about 4-5 mths. Only recently did it flower under severely underpotted condition. There appears to be 2 color forms (light green and brown) in the clumps.

Kalanchoe garambiensis

Acquired this species from a Taiwanese plant collector in 2006. He told me this is an taiwanese endemic, restricted to the southern coastal rocks and cliffs. One would assume that it is relatively easy to keep this plant coming from a subtropical coastal habitat that experiences deluge of monsoon rain. It proves to be ephemeral in the sense that it can grow rapidly and then loose its roots and cling on to life in the form of small bits of shoots or stems. I suppose it may be the same in the wild.

This is the write-up from http://www.efloras.org/.

Kalanchoe garambiensis Kudo 台南伽蓝菜
Description from Flora of China
Herbs 5-8 cm tall, glabrous. Root stout, sometimes branched. Leaves petiolate; leaf blade spatulate, 1-1.8 × 0.3-0.7 cm, base tapered, margin entire, apex obtuse to shortly acute. Inflorescences laxly
corymbiform, cymose, 3-10-flowered. Sepals ovate-oblong, ca. 5 mm, glandular, apex acute. Corolla yellow; tube slender, ca. 2 cm, base urceolate; lobes broadly ovate, apex obtuse, subconcave, or acute. Fl. Apr, fr. Aug.
This species could be regarded as a very depauperate form of Kalanchoe integra. See J. Jap. Bot. 78: 252. 2003: Kalanchoe spathulata var. garambiensis (Kudo) H. Ohba.
* Among rocks. S Taiwan.

Echeveria carnicolor

A local succulent enthusiast purchased this plant from San Francisco. This is America's equivalent of 3 pots for S$10 sale offer at a small nursery. It proves to be a very adaptable and vigorous Echeveria. It offsets readily (above photo)and the bracts on the offset drops most readily. These bracts will take root almost immediately to give new plants (photo below: note another mini plantlet is already growing from a leaf bract bottom right).

The color varies a lot. If grown in shade, the purplish tint is less intense. Under the same condition of light and soil, young plants are also less intensely colored. Unlike other Echeverias, this species can tolerate shade and does not etiolate or become "leggy". I decided this is probably E. carnicolor or a hybrid of possibly Echeveria `Lavender Hill` which is E. carnicolor x E. atropurperea. Both species come from lowland coastal state of Veracruz, Mexico. No wonder it can survive in Singapore!

Take a look at a very extensive photo album of Cok & Ine Grootscholten. I should n't have gave this nursery a miss when i was in Netherlands. A great regret till this day.

Tropical Echeveria?

If you see an Echeveria as white as this one on sale chances are it is a cool growing species which will collapse under Singapore hot and humid climate. E. lauii is arguably one of whitest and prettiest of echeverias. We have to thank nature for this anomaly. It is found just at a low altitude of 500 m a.s.l in a hot and dry ravine of Rio Salado - Quiotepec, Oaxaca, Mexico. This is a relatively slow growing species and it rarely offsets. Fortunately, it can be propagated from leaves and bracts.

Having found a rosette forming member of the crassulaceae family triggers in me a desire to get other Echeverias that may have a good chance of surviving. My shortlist of potential low growing species: E. atropurpurea, E. carnicolor, , E. diffractens, E. nuda, E. racemosa. And if you have any of these species, please contact me!

Impatiens sp Kanchanaburi Province

Thailand is rich in Impatiens species and there are now more being found and properly described. Since Thailand is home to I. mirabilis - a "giant" stem caudiciform from the karst in south, one would expect more pachycaul Impatiens to be found in the Indo China region with rich in karst habitats. Yes, that's indeed the case. Some new pachycaul species like I. pachycaulon from Laos & I. angulata from Southern Western China. Am not able to put a name to this species from Kanchanaburi province, Thailand, except that it is probably in the same section as I. kerriae. It differs from I. mirabilis in that the inflorescence is non-terminal. The stem is also exceptionally woody amongst known pachycaul Impatiens. From a hobbyist point of view, i would group it with I. verrucifer, I. angulata sharing the same habit, general form and flowering characteristics.

Caralluma hexagona

This very small dainty stapeliad was purchased from the famous Chatuchak Market in Bangkok, Thailand. It is a strongly branching plant with forms a small mound or mat over time. I was trying to put an identification to it for some time. At first i thought it was C. greenbergiana then C. foulcheri-delboscii and also possibly C. shadhbana or it could be C. hexagona as well. Yes, i was nearly right. The taxonomist as least according to the chapter Caralluma by B. Muller & Albers in Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants - Asclepiadaceae has reduced all the difficult to spell species epithets to something easy to remember C. hexagona. Let's keep our fingers crossed... you never know when somebody might do some splits or revisions or unearth some earlier published species name than will take precedence according to International Code of Botanical Nomenclature.

This is widely distributed species from the Arabian peninsular (Saudi Arabia, Yemen and Oman). Since it is probably more adaptable given its habitat range that may explain why my clone is heat tolerant. A general rule of thumb is to propagate it during the vegetative phase; it can sometimes collapse without a good reason, remnant branches can prove difficult to root.

Orbea dummeri

On my second attempt keeping O. dummeri, it rewards me with strickingly beautiful flowers. Perhaps it is a more heat tolerant clone after going through a rot or thrive selection process over Southern Taiwan's hot 36 C summers. According to Monograph of Orbea and Ballyanthus by P. V. Bruyns in Systematic Botany Monographs Vol.63, it is a species higher and drier parts of Kenya, and other neighbouring countries of the Rift Valley occuring from 950 - 1600m. The plant in my first failed attempt came from chiller greenhouse of the West, and it quickly perished.

Over the last couple of years, i come to realized that stapeliads are not so difficult to keep if they can tolerate heat in the high 30Cs. Should they look limp and a bit desiccated after their peak growth or flowering season... let them be. They just need a dry rest with a bit of water just to keep them from unrecoverable desiccation. During this period, look out signs of deadly pest like spider mites. Spider mites can easily reduced plants to sad resting state look! When new growth starts, water & fertilize. And if it is a tempermental species take cuttings and keep an extra pot!

Mexican Poppy

We were trying to find a short cut to the bank of the Irrawaddy river at Mandalay, Myanmar. On the map it seemed easy enough to cross several blocks and we will get there. Actually, it was easy enough... but we were not prepared for the reality. It cuts through a very poor part of town, full of shacks assembled from any materials that the dwellers can lay their hands on. On top of that... there's no river view! We were greeted with an earthen great wall - a levee that was about 10 m above the shanty town! As i was scaling the dusty loose earth i couldn't help imagining a raging river laden with flood waters during the wet monsoon threatening to breach the levee and wipe out the shanty district. Walking on top of the levee i saw some bamboo dwellings build on bamboo rafts with various buoys on the swallows of a drying river. Some 20 m away i spotted a very distinctively sliver white pricky plant (above) facing the drying river. It had beautiful bright yellow poppy-like flower. My instinct was to look for seed pods but it was a young plant with the first flowers. Its existence would be ephemeral given its loose footing on a levee. Sad thoughts aside..would you agree that this plant should deserve a place in a dry garden:
After some research, it is a well-known weed Argemone ochroleuca from Mexico and had a string of common names like Mexican poppy, pricky-thistle and so forth and has naturalized to most of the seasonally dry areas of the world. Despite its weedy status, i was looking forward to grow this plant but getting this weed proved elusive. Today with luck, i am given a handful of seeds thanks to my friend who had just visited a semi-desert area in India. Okay, luck was secondary, i actually prep my friend with a list of what to look out for when he's there!

Caralluma speciosa

This is one of the very old succulents that i managed to keep alive. Got it "once-upon-a-time" from Out-of-Africa Plants when general succulent prices were much lower. That was before the US housing bubble, when oil prices are in the low twenties, the price of Caralluma somalica in the catalogue was probably at ~$8 and US oversea postage was relatively low and then surface mail option was still available. It wanted to flower couple of times over the past years but the buds aborted. The La Nina cooling effect of 2007 has triggered it to flower over Nov'07-Feb'08 period.

It did not turned out to be C. somalica as labelled but C. speciosa. The perfectly symmetrical ball of inflorescence about 10 cm across is very impressive. Well, the foetid rotten flesh odor will get your attention within a couple of meters. The smell attracts big carrion flies. It took me many tries to get a decent picture - the corona has bright luminescent quality and contrast poorly with the yellow corolla tube; either the corona is overexposed or the dark maroon corolla lobes are underexposed.

This is one of the big clumping Caralluma found in tropical East Africa (Kenya, Tanzania, Uganda & Horn of Africa (Somalia, Ethiopia, probably also in Djibouti or Eritrea) on dry rocky savanna or semi-desert lowland habitat. C. speciosa and other like C. adenensis, C. somalica, C. acutangula (C. retrospiciens) and C. edithae are similar species that can be "grouped" together. Now, am awaiting another big clumping Caralluma sp. purchased from Bangkok to flower.

Hoya imbricata

Hoya imbricata is endemic to The Philippines. It is found on tree trunks at low to medium altitudes in Bontoc, Rizal, and Laguna Provinces in Luzon and in Busuanga. A thin wiry stem climbs up bare trunk and bears convex disc-shaped leaves up to 12 cm across. If the leaves cannot find a flat surface to wrap around, it will form a half-pouch. In cultivation with limited slab climbing for the growing plant, this takes away the full beauty of this Hoya. Some forms are more attractive with contrasting marble on intense reddish-purple leaves. Ants can take shelter under the leaves or in the pouch. It parallels its cousin Dischida cochleata in its myrmecophytic habit.

The flowers are borne on leafless stems; velvety, and creamy-white 8 to 10 millimeters in diameter. The umbel is geotropic (facing down) and that makes it challenging to photograph. See if you can spot the copper wire that was use to right it up to face the light. This was a 2-leaf cutting gift that my friend brought back from the famous Bangkok's Chatuchak Market. Back then, it was a rare hoya.