Topsy turvey ?

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Brian
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Topsy turvey ?

Post by Brian »

I am doing some repotting today and arrived at this Adromischus plant, now split in two. Somebody is probably going to tell me it is the wrong label.

1. I cannot find reference in The Cactus File Handbook on Adromischus. Nor can I find a record of where this plant came from, DT on a branch visit perhaps? The label may be a clue, which I love as it is small and does not hide the plant!

Any more detail from anybody is appreciated.

2. I am puzzled about the way the leaves sometimes grow up from the stem & other times grow down from the stem. At first I thought this had been planted on its head. However as stems have grown longer the way the leaves grow off the stem seems to change to what I would expect. The roots are clearly at one end not the other.

Is this rooted upside down, if that is possible? Is there a right way up and an upside down? In the second photograph which I want to repot now , all three stems are joined at the bottom but the long stem seems to be telling me it wants to be potted the other way up.

Any comments appreciated. One way or another the second stem needs to be potted up again soon.
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Tony R
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Re: Topsy turvey ?

Post by Tony R »

Strange plant and name Brian.
The 'zig-zag' nature of the stem reminds me of Adromischus roanianus?
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Apicra
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Re: Topsy turvey ?

Post by Apicra »

This is indeed the clonotype of Adromischus roanianus. There never has been the name "Adromischus ernesti-ruschii", but there is such a Gasteria.

This plant is greatly etiolated and ugly! It can be cut back to a short stem and will root/resprout easily.

Best wishes,
Derek Tribble
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Brian
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Re: Topsy turvey ?

Post by Brian »

Thank you Tony and Derek. I discovered there was a gasteria with that name, so this is clearly a fake label! Yes Derek it’s in a right state needing TLC for sure. :oops:

It’s getting a chop up today, both ways up!
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Ali Baba
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Re: Topsy turvey ?

Post by Ali Baba »

To answer your general question, how to tell which way is up: a leaf always has a bud associated with it, from which the lateral branches arise. This is always above the leaf in the crook where the leaf meets the stem. You might need a magnifying glass to see the bud, or even remove a leaf, but it will unequivocally tell you which way up your stem is.
Most plants will only root at the lower end of a cutting, but a prostrate plant that roots at the nodes will root at the tip but of course it will grow from the rooted end, and the unrooted end will gradually die back
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