Gibbaeum
Family: Aizoaceae
Habitat: South Africa, little Karoo region
Cultivation: It is from one of the hottest areas of the planet, the Gibbaeum does not stand low winter temperatures. It must be kept above 10 ° C, shelter indoors during the colder months. Water regularly in summer once every 5-6 days during the growing season.
Curiosity: The name of Gibbaeum is Latin and means “gibbous”. This plant has in fact a peculiar form: the swollen leaves, seem a series of small gibbous forms, more or less elongated depending on the species considered.
Gibbaeum Key Features
The plants of the genus Gibbaeum are dwarf succulents with peculiar aesthetic characteristics, originating in a small region of South Africa. They are dicotyledons, with swollen and asymmetrical leaves which often take the form of small globes while in other cases they remain more elongated. The leaf color is generally pale green, with differences depending on the species and on the conditions where the plant is grown. The trunk is generally inexistent or is reduced to a minimum. The flowers, usually white or in various shades of pink, are shaped like a daisy and sprout from the center of pair leaves in spring. Flowering occurs in spring and continues until late summer.
Variety and Types
Below we list the various species belonging to this genus.
- Gibbaeum album:
- G. angulipes
- G. blackburniae
- G. comptonii
- G. cryptopodium
- G. dispar
- G. esterhuyseniae
- G. geminum
- G. gibbosum
- G. haagei
- G. heathii
- G. luckhofii
- G. nebrownii
- G. pachypodium
- G. periviride
- G. petrense
- G. pilosum
- G. pubescens
- G. schwantesii
- G. shandii
- G. velutinum
TIPS FOR GROWING
These are our tips for growing Gibbaeum:
- It is recommended an exposure in full sun, but it is also suggested to accustom the plant to the sun gradually, if you move the succulent from a shady place (as for example if it is a young plant, which developed from cuttings in a sheltered environment).
- Because it comes from the hottest areas of the planet, the Gibbaeum does not stand low winter temperatures. It must be kept above 10 ° C and put indoors during the colder months.
- Water regularly in summer once every 5-6 days, during the growing season. Some varieties have an inverted vegetative period and in this case they must be watered especially in winter. In general, the irrigation must be suspended when the leaves begin to shrivel and started again when the first leaves are visible.
- Use a well-drained soil, like all succulents, and with low acidity.
- Being small-sized plants, there is a little need of fertilization and of repotting.
The Gibbaeum reproduce by seed and by cuttings.
As cuttings, it is usually used the leaf, cut as close as possible to the base and pleaseuse a sterile blade. As with other species with leaves, it can be necessary a few days to dry the wound and to replant the cuttings in a sandy substrate.
