Birmingham, AL (Zone 8a) | October 2014 | positive
This plant seems impossible to source commercially, but can occasionally be found growing in dappled shade to mostly sunny positions on s...Read Moreandy roadsides or berms, along the edge of pine and oak forests. Finding this plant requires patience and tenacity. Its bright, waxy, finely serrated leaves, and light green fleshy stems with pink streaks are key features in differentiating it from several lookalikes that are often found where it grows.The foliage is deciduous, not evergreen as stated in the above description. Stems and leaves die back in the winter, and reemerge in the spring.
Flowering takes place in May-Jun, with seed pods ripening in Jul-Aug-Sep. Seed collection is difficult due to the fact that the seed pods burst when ripe, scattering the seeds. In late summer 2015. I secured clear plastic film around ripening pods of wild plants to capture released seeds. Seeds were kept in a soft, moist sandy medium, overwintered in a cold frame. In spring 2016, a strong percentage (>70%) of seeds germinated after being exposed to warmth and consistent moisture.
Roots are lengthy, tuberous, and fragile, some extending fairly deep. Spreading rhizomes will occasionally sprout a few shoots a short distance from the mother plant. This plant resents root disturbance, and wilts quickly upon being disturbed. I have been able to get stem cuttings to re-sprout foliage when placed in warm, moist sand after 30-60 days, but few seem to return the following season. The best way to collect this plant for transplantation is to patiently, carefully excavate its root, remove most of its leaves, and transplant quickly into warm, moist sand.
In nature, the plant seems to occur in lone examples or in small groups. This species is associated mostly with xeric soils, but the healthiest examples I have found in nature were located in consistently moist sandy roadside berms in dappled shade, usually on or near a sloped embankment. When established, the plant succeeds with minimal care aside from regular watering. It expects warm, loose sand of reasonable depth, adequate moisture, some pine straw mulch to retain moisture, and no further help from you. If you're fortunate enough to find a plant and get it established in your garden, resist the temptation to love it to death.
This plant seems impossible to source commercially, but can occasionally be found growing in dappled shade to mostly sunny positions on s...Read More