Great Design Plant: Paddle Plant
Paddle plant offers high impact even for a succulent. There are more than 125 species in theKalanchoe genus, but Kalanchoe luciae is distinct. Its flat, stacking leaves contribute to its popularity in the world of succulent landscape design. It was sold for many years under the nameKalanchoe thrysiflora, and plantsmen only somewhat recently corrected this error, emphasizingKalanchoe luciae as the clear crowd favorite.
Topping the list of commonly grown succulents, it has a soaring popularity that offers more opportunities to appreciate and enjoy its bizarreness. Whether or not you grow paddle plant for its easy disposition or eccentric coloring and shape, you’re sure to always be pleased and surprised by it.
Distinguishing traits. Fleshy, gray-green, flat leaves grow off a central stalk to 1 1/2 feet tall and wide. When exposed to prolonged winter sunlight, paddle plant’s leaf margins turn deep pink — fantastically freakish for foliage. Miniature paddle offsets let you know your Kalanchoe is thriving.
Mature paddle plants sprout a single flower stalk in late winter or early spring. As with other monocarpic succulents, this signals Kalanchoe’s impending death. Not to worry; this central flower stalk also produces offsets of future paddle plant generations. Simply snip the offsets off the stalk, allow the ends to callus over and replant them.
How to use it. For a diverse desertscape, intermingle Kalanchoe among other succulent silhouettes. Paddle plant has also been compared to underwater coral, and I’ve seen it playfully used to mimic sunken landscapes.
Succulents thrive year-round in a mild climate like California’s, but paddle plant will just as easily survive indoors.
Read more…
Topping the list of commonly grown succulents, it has a soaring popularity that offers more opportunities to appreciate and enjoy its bizarreness. Whether or not you grow paddle plant for its easy disposition or eccentric coloring and shape, you’re sure to always be pleased and surprised by it.
Distinguishing traits. Fleshy, gray-green, flat leaves grow off a central stalk to 1 1/2 feet tall and wide. When exposed to prolonged winter sunlight, paddle plant’s leaf margins turn deep pink — fantastically freakish for foliage. Miniature paddle offsets let you know your Kalanchoe is thriving.
Mature paddle plants sprout a single flower stalk in late winter or early spring. As with other monocarpic succulents, this signals Kalanchoe’s impending death. Not to worry; this central flower stalk also produces offsets of future paddle plant generations. Simply snip the offsets off the stalk, allow the ends to callus over and replant them.
How to use it. For a diverse desertscape, intermingle Kalanchoe among other succulent silhouettes. Paddle plant has also been compared to underwater coral, and I’ve seen it playfully used to mimic sunken landscapes.
Succulents thrive year-round in a mild climate like California’s, but paddle plant will just as easily survive indoors.
Read more…
