Sunday, August 21, 2011

Kohleria x 'Clytie'.....look what I found hiding on the back deck.

When I bought this for a dollar and a half? at the Beltsville Garden Club Spring Plant Sale, it was just a small rooted cutting in a 3" plastic pot. Not knowing exactly what to do with it, I stuck it pot and all, in one of our large mixed bowls on the back deck. I figured it would get enough water to survive and at some point I'd deal with it....Well I forgot completely about it till this week Karen pulled out something and there it was. It had more than doubled in size and was flowering. Go figure.

Because it's a gesneriad, the fuzzy leaves and colorful tubular flowers make sense. Ever a fan of the overstated, I love the brilliantly bicolored spots and stripes. There are apparently a number of species in the genus, formerly Isoloma, all native to Central or South America. I've read the name before but not seen a specimen previously. This appears to be an easy plant to grow and would seem to be a good candidate for a flowering houseplant.

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