I can be a horrible procrastinator, particularly when it comes to bringing my houseplants back inside for the winter. We have thus far dodged any frost that’s fallen around here, but one night last week, I feared our luck was about to end. I hurriedly toted in my several pots, regretfully dismantling my porch corner hideaway.
Haste makes waste! In my rush, I dropped and broke one pot that was crammed full of an ever-expanding succulent. Only the saucer of the pot broke, but the plant fell to pieces.
Yes, all of this, plus a small bit more, was crammed into that yellow pot!
As I was rummaging about for several pots in which to replant all of these babies, my engineering slanted son said, “You know what would be really cool? If you could somehow make a big tower of dirt and plant those so they’re all sticking out the sides, with one on the top.”
One quick trip to Home Depot to buy a strawberry pot and some cactus potting mix, and his vision came to fruition!
Now, I must admit my ignorance and ask for help from my garden blog friends. I have not a clue what this plant is, beyond it being some sort of succulent. My grandmother had it for years, and I inherited it when she entered a nursing home seven or eight years ago. She didn’t know its name either, but just told me it didn’t need much water or care, and that it would keep having babies. Can anyone tell me what I have here? Julie, perhaps you know?
There are a couple other succulents in my houseplant collection. This is my two year old Christmas (Halloween?)cactus. I was concerned that bringing it inside would cause it to drop its buds, but so far, they’re all intact. Just this morning, I noticed one has already burst open. This plant may need to be re-potted once it’s done blooming.
This is my Crown of Thorns, or Forever Flower, Euphorbia X lomi. It suffered a broken pot when Tropical Storm Irene blew through, and ended up dropping all of its lower leaves before I got it re-potted. It spends all winter in the corner of my kitchen windowsill, where it thrives on late afternoon sunlight and high kitchen humidity. I love the dainty red flowers it cheerfully proffers all winter long.
Besides these succulents, I also have two shamrock plants, two pots of pothos ivy, two large shefflera, the new hibiscus, and a few pots of geraniums to overwinter. They’re all inside now, clustered in the front entryway, waiting for me to rearrange my house to make room just for them! What we won’t do for our plants!
Becky said:
I’m pretty sure that’s an aloe. Exactly which one I couldn’t say. You have quite the plant population explosion going.
K. said:
I agree it looks similar to aloe, but it has a much tighter habit and is much more firm of a plant than any aloe I’ve had before. Another commenter suggested Haworthia. Thanks for visiting! Enjoy the snow! We’re expecting 6 to 10 inches here tomorrow.
Julie said:
Oh my gosh…I am so sorry it has taken me so long to get over here to look at your mystery succulent! At first glance I thought it was some variety of aloe, and after enlarging the picture, I am wondering now if it is a Haworthia variety. I am searching online for an exact form of either, and also checking my Illustrated Dictionary of Succulents, and I am drawing a blank on which one it would be. The lumpy texture of the leaves and coloration, seemingly compactness of it, are good features for ID. Have you ever seen it flower? The flower color would be helpful. I know I blogger, who is a botanist with special interest in succulents. His name is Matt. I will go over and see if he would mind giving it a look. He is a really nice guy. Hey…these are so beautiful…if you would be interested in doing a succulent swap, let me know.
Julie
K. said:
Hi Julie! I appreciate that you got back to me pretty quickly, actually!
No, I have never seen the mystery plant flower. I keep it in a fairly bright spot, but it doesn’t generally get any direct sun. When I was doing some on-line research, I came across the Haworthias as well, and thought it looked like a match for one of them–attenuata, perhaps? If your friend Matt wants to take a look, that would be great.
I’ve never done a long distance plant swap, but it would be interesting to try. Can’t say I’d know how to go about sending a plant to Florida, but you can instruct me!
Local friends have claimed three of these babies, but as you can see, there are plenty!
Thanks for your help, and I look forward to hearing from you again soon!
Julie said:
Well, succulents travel well just dry…so you can just kinda put them in a box with crumpled newspaper and they are fine. (NO soil)…just bare root or cuttings. I guess it is pretty far to send, actually. If it is an attenuata, I can get one here, as they have them at my Home Depot. Of course, I have to question my sanity by thinking I need one more succulent. I already have been neglecting the ones in my screenroom!!! Geeze! If you see a succulent that I have on my blog that you would ever like a cutting of, let me know…I would be happy to ship you some! Maybe you could do a little mixed pot!
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