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ooojen

Stomantium

ooojen
18 years ago

Like tiny Hippo jaws-- certainly not toothy enough to be tigers! I bought this plant as Stomantium trifarium. The species name appears to be a valid one, but I can't find any more information than that (as to what would differentiate it from S. bolusiae, or any other ID facts.)

It has proven to be a delightful little plant, willing to be ignored for long periods of time -- though it shoult be repotted next spring.

Image link:

Comments (9)

  • jeromej13
    18 years ago

    I believe they're called Stomatium. I had some for a while, but spider mites loved them too much. The flowers have a pleasant scent. Yours look great!

  • vvdo
    18 years ago

    I'd be afraid to touch it... may lose a finger with all those jaws.

  • ooojen
    Original Author
    18 years ago

    You're right, Jerome, I put in an unneeded "n", not once, but twice! (Somehow I spelled it right when I googled for more info.)
    I've had spider mite problems with the similar-looking Faucarias in past winters, but so far so good on this plant. It's in a pretty cold spot in winter, so that probably helps.

    It does look like it's saying "Feeeeeed meee", doesn't it? It wouldn't be able to take a finger, though; the larger "jaws" are only about an inch across. Might break a nail ;)

  • ariole
    18 years ago

    I like it. I like it.

    It's a great picture of a great plant. The water droplets and the classy black background don't hurt it either. What is the size of the pot that it needs to graduate from?

    Al

  • shrubs_n_bulbs
    18 years ago

    I think S. bolusiae is more warty/lumpy. Not much about these on the web, you might try a book. The Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants would be the one to look for, probably to borrow rather than buy. Jacobsen's Lexicon might give you some good information but its way old now.

  • billinsc
    18 years ago

    Very cool plant!! One I hadn't seen... Thanks for the pic!!
    Bill in SC

  • Ohio_Green_Thumb
    18 years ago

    Very attractive, I like it! Has it bloomed for you?
    Amy

  • ooojen
    Original Author
    18 years ago

    Thanks, folks!
    The plant is only in a 2" pot, overlapping quite a bit. I'm not sure whether I was clear, but the ~1" measure is for a leaf pair rather than a single leaf.
    The water droplets are the remains of my mite prevention. For a number of little mesemb-type plants that don't get much water in winter, I'll occasionally hold the pots sideways over the sink and use the sprayer to wash the foliage without getting more than a few drops of water in the soil mix. It keeps them dusted and discourages those darned pests that do so well in dry air. ... seems to do the trick.
    It hasn't bloomed for me. I imagine that's because it hasn't been getting out in the sunshine the last couple summers. Those summers have been fairly wet. Had one brief dry spell this past summer, but quite a few periods when it would rain for a short time every day, day after day. It'd rain for an hour or two, then the sun would come out for the rest of the day. That's great for most things, but it limits the number of outdoor spaces I can use for fussy succulents. I've been trying to think up a plan for a framework that I could pull plastic over quickly when it starts to rain (and remove quickly when the sun comes back out), but we get so much hard wind; it's a little difficult to work out. I've got a few months to think on it. ...five or six months. *sigh*

  • shrubs_n_bulbs
    18 years ago

    Jen, you can use a fixed roof-only frame, basically just a sheet of transparent plastic that will keep most rain off. Stomatium don't mind some rain in summer, they are more like Faucaria than Lithops. They should even be safe unprotected all summer, but you might want to keep a backup plant if you do this ;)

    Some species are reported hardy in Denver, don't know about this one, but none of them like cold and wet at the same time.

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