Pachypodium Species, Elephant's Foot, Madagascar Palm

its cool But at the time I didn't know how tall it could get also. I didn't know the Plant was poison type. But over all its a cool Cattie

I bought this plant about 16 or 17 years ago when it was maybe 4" to 6" tall. It is now over 8' tall. It winters from Oct-April inside ...Read Moreand loses over half of the leaves. This happens even with a grow light. Great growth in the summer, the hotter more humid the better. It's in its 4th or 5th pot now. It has never bloomed nor branched. Very easy to care for otherwise. Q: Can anyone tell me how to get it to bloom or branch? I can't get it into my house this year and will have to winter it somewhere else. Q: Could I trim or cut it? I will see if I can upload a photo. Once I get the pic online, Q: please let me know if its a Geayi or Lamerii. they look very similar from the photos I have seen.

This is one of the two most commonly sold and grown Pachypodiums in California (but not the most common- that is P lamerii). It is often...Read More confused with that more common plant, but distinguished by having thinner leaves accented with a prominent midrib of a different color than the rest of the leaf. The leaves, compared to most other Pachypodiums, are less green, though if watered well and happy, the leaves are green.. just a duller and darker shade of green. Plants that are stressed a bit by intense heat, cold or lack of water tend to have darker leaves, still, almost purply in color. THe body of this plant is too similar for me to tell it apart from the more commonly grown and sold Pachypodium lamerii, and it is very spiny and dangerous to hold/plant. In my experience, at least here in southern CAlifornia, this is the slower growing plant (barely) if conditions are ideal, and given plenty of water in the warmer months. This plant is from the more dry areas of Madagascar, and is perhaps more prone to rot than P lamerii (the 'other' Madagascar 'Palm'), though I have not noticed that. P lamerii is from a much wetter climate in Madagascar, and truly loves to be watered a lot in the summers, make it grow faster and faster. This is a great accent plant, and though it is listed here as growing 12-15 feet tall, that is in many years. Most plants I have seen are 2-5' tall and, at least here in so Cal, rarely flower, or less rarely than the P lamerii.

The most common Pachypodium and maybe the easiest to maintain.Looks as if originaly collected on Mars! Fast grower for a Pachy. I have se...Read Moreen large ones kept outdoors all year in the Bay Area but,they were in pots barely larger then the trunks and under overhangs. As always, the key to keeping a borderline tropical is keeping the soil dryish and fast draining so air can permeate. I have never seen a geayi in flower.
2008: Well,things and times change-lol.Palmbob is right that lameri is the slightly faster grower.I had just had one rambunctious geayi that's all. Keeping more of both seems to confirm lamerii is more gardening friendly. P.geayi still has a place with it's maybe fatter trunk,longer thinner leaves that under certain lighting and cultural conditions turn silver or blackish even.
Also large potted P.lameri are showing up for sale at box stores and while P.geayi is still common at small sizes,larger are not often seen except for specialty nurserys.