Sunday, January 10, 2010

Otacanthus sp--its a winner!




What a charming little plant this is turning out to be, even though it came up in a pot that had a different label, and I can't find a record of my ordering the seed from my source. I suspect it could be O. crenatus, a newly described species, based on the info I can find at the moment. It comes from Brazil, and is an easy grower from rather fine seeds. Leaves are pubescent and have crenate margins, and the plant grows about a foot tall. It began to flower in fall, and by now is actually looking much better as more flowers open, than these pics, taken indoors when the flowers first appeared, reveal. I anticipate that it will bloom very well though next summer when placed out in the garden, and it is small enough to use as a container plant as well. It is much more restrained than the only Otocanthus seen occasionally in cultivation, O. caeruleus, which can get lanky.

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