Re: Pereskia grandifolia
>
> >
> > I just started this plant from seed & know almost nothing about it except it looks like it could be a succulent. Can anybody tell me a bit more about this plant, how tall it gets, what does the flower look like, etc? Thanks, Judy Showers, greenhouse grower in Pennsylvania, zone 6b
> >
> > It is a huge primitive cactus with abundant entire glossy leaves.
> It will cover an entire house in southern Cal but I grown mine
> indoors in a large pot in Berkeley. It likes bright light and a
> surprising amount of water. It is part vine-like and also part scandant
> shrub.
>
> It has a large woody trunk, many branches and large bright pink
> slightly fragrant flowers. Its common name is "Barbado's Gooseberry".
> It is self fertile and produces piles of fruits which I have never
> tasted--they smell citrusy. It has clusters of long, black lethal
> spines.
>
> I love mine but most visitors give it wide berth. I let it dry up
> over winter and then resume watering in May. This causes it to lose
> all its old foliage and bloom like crazy for 2-3 months.
>
> Best wishes!
>
> Michael Barclay
>
> Michael D. Barclay, Really Special Plants & Gardens, Kensington, CA
> Cal Hort Council
> opga@wenet.net Growing 2,000 species fifteen miles from the Golden Gate!
Michael,
Thanks so much for the information. Looks like "another one" with spines. I have a Cassia with spines, Erythrina crista-galli, Erythrina herbacea, and some other plants with lethal-looking spines. Guess I'm gonna have to get me a pair of leather gloves for Christmas. For some
reason, I seem to end up with the spiny ones, but if you can get them to bloom, they are so rewarding. Judy Showers, Greenhouse gardener in S. Central PA, zone 6b
http://www.epix.net/~jshowers
