Graptoveria “Debbie”

Synonyms:

No synonyms are recorded for this species name.

Habitat:

Graptoveria “Debbie” is a nursery hybrid and, thus, it doesn’t exist in nature. Echeveria and Graptopetalum, instead, are native to Central and South America.

Description:

Graptoveria “Debbie” is a nursery hybrid, obtained by the crossing of Graptopetalum amethystinum and an unknown species of Echeveria. It consists in a bunch of rosettes of rounded, fleshy succulent leaves, teal in colour but with evident purple tinges that earned this plant the common name of “ghost pink-plant”. Every rosette reach approximately 20 centimeters in diameter and teems with leaves. The beauty of this plant lays also in the regular arrangement of the leaves in a rosette that looks like a flower. The exposure to intense sunlight enhance the purple red tinge of the leaves. The basal leaves are usually bigger and ore elongated than the central ones. All the leaves are tongue-shaped, with a slightly pronounced point, but generally rounded. Flowers are borne on a central, elongated stalk formed in Spring and summer, and are pinkish in colour and bell-shaped, like in Echeverias.

Cultivation:

Being hybrids between plants of a tough genus, Graptoverias are resistant and easy to grow. Here below are our tips for cultivation:

Choose a position in full sun: direct rays will enhance its colourful purple tinges. Be careful to protect it from direct sunlight at least during the hottest hours of the day in summer.
Graptoveria “Debbie” can’t stand cold temperatures: keep it indoors in WInter, as it doesn’t tolerate temperatures below 7ºC.
Just as for the Echeverias, water regularly every 2-3 days in spring and summer but stop in winter. If you water it too much, the soil won’t manage to dry out and there is the danger of root rot; if too little, the rosettes will shrivel up. Be careful not to wet the rosette: stagnant water might cause leaf rotting.
Use a standard soil for cacti, not too rich in nutrients and very draining.
Fertilize in spring, once a year during the growing season, better if in Spring, with a specific product for succulents.
Repotting will probably be necessary every Spring, as Graptoveria “Debbie” is a fast-growing species.

Propagation:

Hybrids do not produce fertile seeds. It will be very easy, however, to obtain new seedlings using as cuttings either single leaves or suckers sprouting at the base of the plant (and which can be either small rosettes or small branches).

Curiosity:

Graptoveria is a name obtained by the combination of the genera names “Graptopetalum” and “Echeveria”. The reason of the name “Debbie” is actually unknown: it has been likely named after the nurseryman who obtained it by crossing the two starting succulents.

Official Web Site:
www.giromagi.com

Italian Blog:
www.giromagicactus.com

Tips:
Read our advice

Recent Posts

Start typing and press Enter to search