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What is the name of this plant?
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Posted by haxuan Vietnam (My Page) on Sun, Mar 12, 06 at 21:52
I have this plant but I don't know its name. The plant sellers here in Vietnam call it "the shell plant" since it bears a seed (?) resembling a clam. Could someone ID this plant? I plant it in a tiny hanging basket with coconut coir and some other water-holding stuff.
Here's a pic of it. The size is a bit too big but I don't know how to resize it yet, sorry:
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Follow-Up Postings:
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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| Can you make a pic of an open flower - in Macro setting - means the bigger the better from the side and from the top - as well as seed pods? It is a big forum and we can get lucky and have an insight from a specialist in SE Asian flora. What you need to find out is a latin name for it. Good luck. irina |
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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| Ouki Irina... will take a picture like that when the buds open up. |
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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hi there,
this is Dischidia pectinoides, a hoya relative. the "seeds" are actually a modified leaf that has an ecological role in their ant symbiosis. it's a really fun plant! -ming |
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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| Wow! Ming - thank you Irina |
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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Thanks Ming.
I have something else to say regarding the "shell-like" pod. I "adventurously" opened one of the shell pods and found there're roots inside it. Actually, the shell seems to form in order to protect the "aerial" roots of the plant. So I don't know whether Ming is referring to the same plant or not.
Irina, the buds never open. In fact, one of the buds has gone straight to form a pair of seeds.
Although I don't know its scientific name, it's a nice plant. If it's related to hoya, it's the more better. |
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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| i read that the ants will designate one of the pods as a dump site and take their waste there; they choose other pods to live within. i don't know how true it is, but the inward-growing roots are a way for this plant to utilize this waste as a sort of fertilizer. hoyas and dischidias are all asclepiads. -ming |
RE: What is the name of this plant?
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| This is the new seeds of the plant. 
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RE: What is the name of this plant?
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| You're right, Ming... it's a dischidia pectinoides. I found a pic at Bob Smoley's Hoyas page. You're definitely a plant expert! Thanks. |
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