Portulacaria afra
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Portulacaria afra |
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Portulacaria afra is a species of plant in the genus Portulacaria in the Didiereaceae family. Common names are jade tree, bacon tree and elephant tree.
description
Portulacaria afra grows as a shrub or small tree and is 2 to 4 meters high. The smooth, reddish-brown trunk reaches a diameter of up to 30 centimeters. On the 3 to 6 millimeter thick shoots with 2 to 3 centimeters long internodes sit the obovate and thick leaves. They are 13 to 26 millimeters long, 10 to 21 millimeters wide and are light green in color.
The 3 to 6 flowers are on a 4 to 6 centimeter long stem, reach 3 millimeters in diameter and are pink in color. The sepals are 0.5 millimeters and the perishable petals 1.5 millimeters long. 5 to 10 stamens with red anthers are formed.
The number of chromosomes is 44.
Distribution and systematics
Portulacaria afra is common in Mozambique , Swaziland and in the South African provinces of Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal .
The first description of Portulacaria afra in 1787 by Nikolaus Joseph von Jacquin .
There are two cultivated variegate forms of the species:
- 'Tricolor' - with yellow variegated and partly pink leaves
- 'Variegata' - with yellow-tinged leaves and more thin shoots than the species
use
In Africa, the species is used for planting hedges and as a forage plant. In culture, the plant is used as a grafting base.
Furthermore, Portulacaria afra is often kept as a bonsai because it is an easy-care plant and forgives beginners' mistakes well.
literature
- DG Rowley: Portulacaria . In: Urs Eggli (Ed.): Succulents Lexicon Volume 2 Dicotyledonous plants (dicotyledons). Ulmer, Stuttgart 2002, ISBN 3-8001-3915-4 , pp. 453-454.
