I’ve really gotten into epiphytic plants recently. It started with orchids many years ago, and now includes the usual cast of characters. But in the past couple of months, it’s been Epiphyllum. Epiphyllums? Epiphyllumae? There are occasional moments when I wish I’d studied Latin, but thankfully those moments are brief.
Discovered this guy pushed into an overcrowded rack in a big box. I’ll bet he looked great when he first arrived, but he’d been beaten up during his stay. I can fix that. The tag said “Orchid Cactus”, and had a scientific name even I knew wasn’t correct. The growers own site had a different scientific name – Epiphyllum guatemalense montrose – but I also found at least three other variations of that scientific name. So until I figure it out for certain, I’m sticking with that one.
He was, of course, in overwatered coco peat which would need to be remedied quickly. It was, and he now lives in bark with a bit of sphagnum. A couple of weeks have passed, and there are signs of new growth. He’s had a couple of showers and most of the gunky stuff is gone. He’s supposed to bloom in fall and spring, so maybe he’ll be established enough to bloom this fall.
He’s a good addition. He’s different from my other Epiphyllum? Epiphyllums? There’s that darn plural thing again. That’s what I really need to figure out, Latin plurals.
I’ll keep you posted.
