Kalanchoe

It’s kalanchoe blooms a-plenty here! I have quite a collection and there are lots and lots of species - mostly small shrubby herbaceous plants, but some are vining and trailing plants and there is even the large felt plant (Kalanchoe beharensis) which can grow up to 6m tall! If you’re not fully up on your taxonomy you might be surprised to know how many of your succulents are Kalanchoes. Most people know the winter pots of colour - Kalanchoe blossfeldiana, but also in the genus are silver spoons (K. bracteata), panda plant (K. tomentosa), flapjacks (K. thyrsiflora), the weedy lavender scallops (K. fedtschenkoi syn. Bryophyllum fedtschenkoi) and even more weedy and invasive mother of millions! (K delagoensis syn. Bryophyllum delagoense)*.

Clockwise from top left: the vining ‘Black Widow’ (Kalanchoe beauverdii) with buds ready to bloom, the soft and furry K. tomentosa (albeit without flowers!), the trailing ‘Coral Bells’ (K. uniflora) and last years Black Widow flowers in full bloom.

Kalanchoe’s are in the Crassulaceae family and mainly native to tropical regions of Africa and Madagascar. They are ‘short day’ plants, meaning they flower in response to long dark periods (and hence short days!). Their succulent leaves make them easy care as they have their own store of water and can be left to dry out a little. I’ve found they grow best in a part shade area, with protection from the drying western sun, although they are fairly adaptable.

Fun fact - as testament to how happy plants and flowers make us, a mature Kalanchoe plant was sent up to the Soviet Salyut 6 space station in the 1970’s to boost crew morale!

K. blossfeldiana in lots of colours!

*As sometimes happens in plant taxonomy world, the distinction between Bryophyllum and Kalanchoe is a little messy. Bryophyllum could be seen as a subset of Kalanchoe.