Re: Unkown Plectranthus

John,
Is this species variable as to blooming time as well? 
I think I had this plant prior to the 1998 freeze here
in Berkeley, with a very large leaf up to 12 inches
long, and only blooming in winter with 2 foot long
bloom spike.  I have since seen a very similar plant
in the trade, except it has smaller leaves and seems
to have different bloom periods in southern versus
northern California.  I have seen forms that bloom
nearly all year round, particularly a plant at Robert
Abe's old nursery in Carpenteria.  I think this is
also the escaped weed that I saw growing throughout
the Cape Town area, particularly right along the coast
in wet seep areas.  It doesn't seem to have any
tendency to reseed here in the SF Bay Area.  This
plant is also given a different name at Strybing
Arboretum. where it doesn't get as large as some I
have seen, at up to 12 feet tall in Carpenteria.

Is this also the same species that is native to Sri
Lanka and India and used in Vedic(sp?) medicine?
--- John MacGregor <jonivy@earthlink.net> wrote:
> on 1/26/04 6:12 AM, Wim van Putten at
> wimvanputten@mail.telepac.pt wrote:
> 
> > I like to thank everybody for the suggestions.
> > I looked at internet and it is definetely
> Plectranthus comosus.
> > Janet ter Veer had the right suggestion
> > I can place a picture on the internet, any
> suggestions  for the best site.
> > I also joined the plectranthus discussion group
> but not much is happening
> > there.
> > Thanks
> > Wim
> 
> Wim,
> 
> I presume that you identified this as P. comosus
> with reference to the
> following web site:
> 
>
http://www.botgard.ucla.edu/html/MEMBGNewsletter/Volume4number1/Plectranthus
> comosus.html
> 
> Unfortunately, there are innumerable incorrect
> identifications of
> Plectranthus on the Internet, which causes huge
> confusion.  Worse, this one
> appears on a site under the aegis of the University
> of California at Los
> Angeles!  Still it is incorrect.  Plectranthus
> comosus Sims is a confused
> name, that sometimes has been misapplied to what is
> currently classified as
> Plectranthus barbatus var. grandis (as I suggested
> to you on the
> Mediterranean Plants list that your plant might be).
> 
> I have spent hundreds of hours on the photo section
> of this Plectranthus
> group setting up an index of photos taken by our
> members and myself of
> species in cultivation correctly identified
> according to most recent
> literature. This is still a work in progress, but P.
> barbatus in some of its
> clones is represented.  Have you looked at the P.
> barbatus folder in the
> photo sections?  I think you will agree that your
> plant corresponds with the
> photos of the large form of P. barbatus.
> 
> John MacGregor
> South Pasadena, CA 91030
> USDA zone 9   Sunset zones 21/23
> 


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