My mother-in-law gave this plant to my husband to give to me to rescue for her and we have no idea what it is because it was given to her by her neighbor. Big problem is my mother-in law and her neighbor only speak spanish and anytime they give me a name to a plant it is completely different than what it actually is.
Could anyone please let me know what I am trying to rescue for her?
It's an Oxalis of some sort--not sure which cultivar though. I quickly skimmed through the ones in Plant Files and didn't see one that looked like it had the exact coloration of yours, but hopefully someone else will recognize it. http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/adv_search.php?searcher%5Bcommon%5D=&searcher%5Bfamily%5D=&searcher%5Bgenus%5D=oxalis&searcher%5Bspecies%5D=&searcher%5Bcultivar%5D=&searcher%5Bhybridizer%5D=&searcher%5Bgrex%5D=&search_prefs%5Bblank_cultivar%5D=&search_prefs%5Bsort_by%5D=rating&images_prefs=both&Search=Search
Your Oxalis might be this one: http://davesgarden.com/guides/pf/go/1241/
Looks like you are right! Thank you both so much for your help!
It makes a nice houseplant. Feed it regularly and keep it moist. Pull any dried up leaves from around the edges as it grows and give it plenty of bright light or sun. If it ever starts to look bad, cut off all of the foliage, repot the little corms and it'll take off again.
Does this plant have a dormant period?
When I leave mine outside it goes dormant for winter and puts back out in spring but if you take it inside it will continue to bloom and grow. Mine is in the greenhouse right now but is hardy to my zone7. I'm not sure what your zone is. My plant is same as yours.
I was given a similar oxalis as a gift when I was in the hospital this past spring. Mine has solid burgundy, rather than variegated leaves. It was looking puny lately but put out a couple of flower stalks.
A copy/paste from one of my old posts:
Oxalis will appreciate a soil that you can keep moist but will still have plenty of aeration. I used to tend this plant for my mom in a south window behind shears & used Foliage-Pro 9-3-6 on it because it contains ALL the essential nutrients, but you would do well with any other 3:1:2 ratio fertilizer (like MG 12-4-8 or 24-8-16, both 3:1:2 ratios as well).
No matter what you do, the plants will at times look ratty. They may be telling you they need a rest. I've had good luck withholding water at that time for several weeks and letting the plants die back before starting my water/fertilizer regimen again.
Burned leaf margins could be a sign that soluble salts levels in the soil are too high, or you're using too much fertilizer. Fertilize every couple of weeks with a 1/4 strength dose, ONLY when the plants are growing well, unless you're using a soil that allows you to water profusely at every watering (so at least 10-15% of the total volume of water used exits the drain hole), in which case you can fertilize more frequently at low doses with no concern for salt build-up.
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Thanks for the suggestions. It is a nice looking plant that I would like to keep healthy.
Hi,
You have red leaf Oxalis Triangularis! I've had mine for about 7 years and it's wonderful! I've repotted 3 times and have ended up with many new corms that I've given away. It loves sun. I feed mine Algoflash from March to November and it does fine. It does get "ratty" looking at times, but it always snaps back. Here's what mine looked like in June of 2008! It gets full morning sun. It's never been outside, but my brothers has and it loves it outside in the summer.
Wishing you lots of luck with it.
Kathy in Delaware
That looks beautiful Kathy! I can't wait for mine to look like that one day.
With some love and care and the right light, yours will get nice and full. If you need anything else, just send me a dmail. I'll help you in any way I can.
Kathy
