Hydnophytum sp. "Compact Caudex", Bogor Botanical Garden

[Stone Jaguar]

Greetings:

 

Another enigmatic, unidentified Hydnophytum species that originated from material grown as epiphytes on trees at the Bogor Botanical Garden in Java, but whose true provenance remains unknown at this time.

 

The plant is now three years-old from seed, and over the past year has begun to spontaneously slough plates of the soft, corky cuticle layer of its epidermis as root spines begin to emerge at random from the caudex and large entryways to domatia begin to appear on the lower edge of same. For size reference, it is being grown in a 15 cm wooden basket. The underlying (brown) layer of tissue is quite hard and sound, so this is not rot-related and this "skin-shedding" appears to be normal development for this plant. The only image I have seen of the parent shows a very handsome-looking plant, with a rounded silvery caudex of ~25 cm diameter whose flattened upper parts are dotted with many small entrance holes. Its branches are relatively narrow, and flowers are relatively large (~10 mm) for this genus.

 

This is the first serious flowering for this plant, so I hope to generate fruit this year.

 

Cheers,

 

J

[Frank]

I also grow this plant from Bogor, Java but mine does not have the "psoriasis" of the caudex that Jay's does.  I got it as a small seedling in 2008 and it is now deforming a 5 inch plastic pot.  It is stingy with flowers and only a few have set seed.