You've found the famous Dave's Garden website! Join this friendly global community that shares tips and ideas for home and gardens, along with seeds and plants!
Check out the DG homepage for a brief overview of what you'll find in this gardening mega-site.
Login
If you don't have an account yet, visit the registration page to sign up.
Dutchman's Pipe Cactus, Night blooming Cereus Epiphyllum oxypetalum
I was just given this plant a few days ago - I think it got too large for the previous owners. This picture was taken during the day, so it doesn't show off the blooms, but it does show how big these can get!
Hi Ninjacam,
That is a big plant and it does need some tender loving care. In looking at the picture I see a lot of long shoots with only a leaf or two at the end. You can cut these back and stick them in potting soil and you will have new plants.
Another thing that can be done to this plant is when it starts putting out those long shoots pinch the tips off the end. This will stop the shoot from growing so long and force it to produce more leafs. Which is what you want. The more leafs the more blooms. Never remove the older leafs on the plant as these are the ones that will produce buds. I don't know how long it takes a new leaf to bud, but I do know that they don't for at least 3 or 4 years.
If you need help in care for this plant feel free to write me I have a pamplet that was sent to me on the care of the "Queen of the Night". I took that information and typed it up and added my comments of what I have done for my plants. I have sent the instructions to several that have contacted me.
Here is a pictues of two of my "Night Blooming Cereus" My Mother called them "Christ In The Manger" and I like to call them that also.
Connie cbalihi@yahoo.com
Thanks for tips Connie. I my recent post on the cacti forum I misnamed it Princess of the Night. Here is a photo. The wall behind shows a small part of the 20 foot rain forest panorama I painted to make the various plants feel at home.
Hi All,
Sorry I haven't been here for a while. My computer crashed the first of the year and I lost all of my links to my favorite sites. Scooterbug sent me this link today, so I will try to keep checking out the site to see what is going on.
I married in July and have been very busy trying to combine two full houses of furniture into one house to make it "Our Home". My plants are still at my house on the front porch. They are blooming like crazy and I don't want to risk loosing the buds by moving them right now. I will probably bring them down late Sept. in the back of a truck with a camper shell over it. I may have to rent a U-haul to move them since they are getting so big.
If any of you have any questions you can check out the link that Scooterbug posted or write me personal e-mail at cbalihi@yahoo.com and I will answer as soon as I can.
Your Flower Friend,
Connie
P.S. I think that Bavarian's plant is the same as mine, but hers has a longer leaf, and that is why the flowers are so small. Mostly due to letting the shoot grow long and then only putting out 1 long leaf. I could be wrong tho it is sometimes hard to tell by looking at a picture. !! :-)
I love this plant. Mine has been in our family over 100 years ! I have shared it with many people. It's always blooming ! We even had sweetest smelling blooms last Christmas !
This is by far my favorite plant. I actually love the long stems more than the leaves. The only thing I don't like is when it gets burned over the winter and I have to clip it...I'd much rather it just grow and grow. The stems can get over 8' high or more...I have to get on a 6' ladder to tie them up.
I have three plants in massive pots and a couple in the ground. The flowers are exactly like these in this picture the next day ...limp. I have more pictures at my pages (under radnip) at webshots.com.
In Los Angeles, and before that in Houston, and my father says in Taiwan as well, we have always had this plant, in one form or another. My father grows his against shaded walls (north side) outdoors and I have one set (not sure whether it is one plant or more but it all started as one plant about 6 years ago from a couple cuttings my father gave me) against two walls partially under the shade of a persimmon tree.
I rarely trim them though I am constantly tying up their stems or untangling them. I am also usually tying them up to strong supports, usually some giant stakes, though the plants have been known to break or bend them. The plants in the pots have also been known to flop over in wind, therefore the tying-them-up part.
They definitely look better in partial shade though one of my giant pots is in morning sun and shaded by the house in the afternoon (east side of house).
They flower for us pretty much constantly. Depending on how much care of it I've have taken over the year, it will bloom a huge mass (50+ flowers) or much fewer. I suppose I ought to take newer pictures, though my plants have been neglected this year due to the house being worked on.
The plants that get at least 1/2 day sun bloom much more than the ones under the trees, though they all bloom. Even my tiny ones from cutting (I try to keep what cuttings I can) will try to bloom, though not always successfully. You can see the buds come in and fall off, usually only someone who knows what to look for knows a flower bud just fell off.
I have noticed that the plants only begin to bloom after a period of very warm weather. I would guess at least 80 degrees F. It will bloom constantly, taking about a month to create the next set of blooms, until the weather turns colder. Each bloom takes a few nights to finish -- usually a few the 1st night, a lot the second night or a few nights later, and a few stragglers the next night.
The flowers have the most heavenly scent and I cannot imagine not having any flowers to perfume the night. I think if I could camp next to them all night, I would. I'm a night person, so it took my early-morning husband to discover you can still see the blooms early in the morning before the sun comes completely up. As long as the bloom is in shade, it'll still be open a bit.
My mother sometimes will cook the spent flowers. I think it's all edible but only the petals are not slimy. I have tried this and it is okay, but a lot of work just to pull the petals apart so I can chop them a bit and stir-fry them. I think if it wasn't that much work, I 'd eat them more :)
I do not find this plant ugly at all, though it does need a little bit of upkeep in the spring. I usually just leave it alone, except clean it up a bit, give it some water and heap some mulch on it after the winter.
i really love this plant, i have been looking for one from march 1984 up to now. my mother had one and when she passed i live in another state and wasent able to get the plante. the one here is way larger than anything i ever seen. ann
Here is a link to a web site I found on line that has the Night Blooming Cereus for sale. I know nothing about the site, but if they send you what they show in the picture I will say that looks like a good deal. http://www.southernpineperennials.com/
I used to have several plants that looked like this plant, but some of mine had pink, red and an orange flowers. When I move from Ventura, CA to Lake Isabella,CA I lost all of them to the freeze. I tried to protect them, but could not take them inside and even just covering them did not help. Now I live in Kentucky and do not think I can grow them here. I have no greenhouse nor a home big enough to bring them inside. Oh Well< but I enjoy seeing everyones pictures.
