Life Plant

Description

Kalanchoe pinnata, formerly known as Bryophyllum pinnatum, also known as the air plant, cathedral bells, life plant, miracle leaf, and Goethe plant is a succulent plant native to Madagascar, which is a popular houseplant and has become naturalized in tropical and subtropical areas. It is distinctive for the profusion of miniature plantlets that form on the margins of its phylloclades, a trait it has in common with some other members of Bryophyllum (now included in Kalanchoe). It is a succulent, perennial plant, about 1 m (39 in) tall, with fleshy cylindrical stems and young growth of a reddish tinge, which can be found in flower throughout most of the year. The specific epithet "pinnata" is the feminine form of the Latin adjective pinnatus, meaning "winged, pinnate". The leaves of this species are thick, fleshy, elliptical in shape, curved, with a crenate or serrated margin, often reddish. Simple at the base of the stem, the leaves are imparipinnate at the top, 10–30 cm (4–12 in) long, with three to five pairs of fleshy limb lobes. The leaves are remarkable for their ability to produce bulbils. At their margin, between the teeth, adventitious buds appear, which produce roots, stems and leaves. When the plantlets fall to the ground, they root and can become larger plants. This is a fairly common trait in the section Bryophyllum. The fruits are follicles (10–15 mm) which are found in the persistent calyx and corolla.