Great haul, lucky you; what a wonderful patron you've gotten.

One suggestion, you might please stop calling Portulacaria afra a Jade plant (of any kind). It's not a Jade, not in the family of Jade (Crassulacae) or even related to Jades. If you must have a common name for it, please try Elephant Bush, which is how it's sometimes referred to in Africa. This way it stops spreading the confusion that it's some kind if Jade.

Sorry, but a bit of a pet peave of mine.

Enjoy your wealth of Succulents!

Actually it is often refered to as a small leaf Jade and that is what I will call it..it you dont like it just keep it to yourself please.

Mary

Dear Mary,

Yes, it is often referred to as a small leaf jade (the top references in Google confirm this), but that doesn't make the reference correct, because it isn't - that's mob mentality in the plant world. Portulacaria is in the family Portulacaceae, whereas Crassula ovata, as you know, is from the family Crassulaceae.

PG's suggestions are just that - suggestions on how to discuss plants using names that are clear to almost everyone. Whether you adopt that usage is, of course, up to you, but it's often very helpful to use the correct name, rather than one that is, at best in this case, deeply ambiguous.

Don't take this suggestion so personally - she's just trying to help you become more knowledgeable about this plant in particular and these plants in general.

I can tell you that, from just over 11 years in the C&S world, the common name that I've heard most is 'Elephant Bush'. But if you refer to it as Portulacaria afra, everyone knows whereof you speak.

Why not use the correct name, if you're going to go to the effort of learning about them (good) and growing them (even better)?

whatever...this thread will no longer be about the box I got it will now be about defending PG and not using the common name of small leaf Jade..good greif.

I did use the correct name I listed it as Port Afra..and the common name of small leaf Jade..there is nothing incorrect about it. Many websites list it this way.

But this thread was not made to get corrections on if some one likes the common name I chose as opposed to the common name you like. They are both still correct referances.

The names I listed were a copy and paste from the email the person sent me telling me what the contents of the box were...a very knowledgable person with experience from this forum.

Mary

Mary,

I thought that in your posting their names you were looking for confirmation &/or accuracy; my mistake. I meant no offense, I apologize, pls. lighten up. Most importantly, enjoy the plants.

I have a feeling I know who the sender is & I'm confident HE understood my intention, as did McHarris, so thanks J.

Thank you PG...sorry to be defensive..its just that so many people have so many opinions and views in this hobby and everyone wants theirs to be "the right one"..it makes it hard for people to learn.

I also intentionaly did not reveal the sender out of respect for the person.

Yes i hope to enjoy the plants, I do understand what you meant with the common names...but it is listed in many websites like I said. I would have understood your point more if I had not lister the Port Afra name with it.

Anyways its done let enjoy our day :)

Mary

Good morning, Mary!
That is a very nice package, indeed! The sender was surely generous!

(For the record, you'll never hear me refer to Portulacaria afra as
a Jade plant).

Regardless of what you choose to call the Portulacaria afra, I must warn
you not to treat it like an actual Jade plant (Crassula) - or you'll be sorry.
The Port. afra requires more water, in my experience, or it will drop its leaves.
This has been particularly true of the variegated Port. afra - after re-potting,
I allowed the roots to go too long without water, fearing root-rot. As a result,
my Port. afras dropped almost every single leaf. I had to keep them moist, in a
southern window, to grow leaves again. Now that they're outside, they're growing
nicely. However, the variegated form grows slowly...so it's a real waiting game.

Josh

Good morning Josh:)

Yes the sender was very generous and very kind in all their emails also. I am very grateful to them:)

OK ok..I get the point it is not a Jade..LOL

Josh, can you give me some pointers on how to set up the Port Afra to get it to root? Do I let if be dry like other succulents till it roots? Or should I water it some while it is trying to root? I really love this plant and dont want it to rot.

Mary

Sure thing!

After allowing my Port. afra cutting to dry a bit, I put it into a slightly moist mix of bark, perlite, pumice, and gravel - in a .71 gallon container. The mix was *already* moist from rinsing a day or two prior - so I did not water at the time of potting.

To keep the mix moist, I added a few ounces of water to the container a few times a week. I also positioned the cutting in filtered sunlight, so the leaves wouldn't dry out so quickly - and so the mix itself would hold its moisture longer.

As the Port. afra grows roots, the wrinkled leaves will become plump again; and, eventually, you'll see new growth emerge. When new growth emerges, you can begin watering the cutting as you would an established plant - which is to say, water the entire container, and then allow the mix to dry....just don't let it get as dry as a Jade's mix.

Also, if you notice some of the leaves are firm but yellow, take it as a sign that there's too much moisture in the mix.

Josh

Mary,

And when it gets about five feet tall, it will flower if it's kept mostly dry in the summer - it has these pretty pink/purple tassel-like flower clusters. I had the three tree-like ones in the front yard for nearly 7 years before they flowered.

The main reason I (and others) posted what we did was to educate you. If a posting of mine is incorrect in its information, I want to be corrected. Unless otherwise noted as a guess, opinion or otherwise, and I don't mean to brag, I know what I'm talking about. There are many other folks here that also know what they're talking about, in fact infinitely more so than I do, so if you wish to discount what I say, that's OK. If, in the future, you can learn from what's posted here and not feel offended by polite corrections, it can be said, as Martha says, 'That's a good thing'.

And this is what the link is:

" Portulacaria afra, the Elephant's Food or Spekboom:

a monograph which contains some of the areas of

both knowledge and ignorance pertaining to this plant"

by Robert J. Baran

© 1999-2008

Here is a link that might be useful: Assume the Spekboom

I would like to put this issue to rest now please I have heard what everyone has to say and am taking it all as a learning experience ok.

Mary

TY for the website mcharris. One last thing.

This was on it as the common names:

"Common: [Afrikaans:] Spekboom (lit., "fat pork tree"); [English:] Elephant's Food, Elephant Bush, Elephant Grass, Elephant-Plant, Olifantskos; Purslane Tree; Dwarf or Tiny Leaf Jade, Baby Jade [but RJB has also seen small rooted cuttings of Crassula offered as "Baby Jade" in the garden department of the Fountain, CO Lowe's, 11/31/08); gya-nese; [French:] pourpier en arbre; [German:] Speckbaum, Geldbaum, Pfennigbaum, Elefantenbaum, Strauchportulak, Jadebaum; [Portuguese:] albero dei lardo; [Ronga:] sala-ni-marumbi; [siSwati:] sidondwane; [Xhosa:] iGwanitsha (iGqwanitsha); [Zulu:] isAmbilane, inDibili-enkulu, isiDondwane, isiCococo, iNtelezi, iNdibili. "

Mary

I love opening a box like this - it's like Christmas in July! Congrats!

And please take the suggestions about common names in stride. The problem I have with calling Portulacaria "Baby Jade" is that there is a small-leaved Jade, and when people use this name, I automatically assume they're talking about the Crassula one, not the Port one. You did make it clear using the botanical name first, of course. There's never a mistake of assumption as long as you use the botanical name. Another one that always throws me off is "Hanging Jade", which is Senecio jacobsonii (sp?) I ran across one years ago at a local nursery and was so excited to bring home a "new form of Jade." It was a few years later that I learned it was not even remotely related to a Jade!

Besides, I gave up using common names when I couldn't get anyone to use my name for Lithops... "Butt-Crack Plant"

:-) Denise in Omaha

Thank you Denise:)
I am really enjoying working with these. The biggest one is posing to be a bit of a chanlenge for me bt I love it! The trunk shape on the largest is incredible but very challenging..lol
I have some limbs falling off now and of course leaves but thats ok I am expecting it.

The one that breaks my heart to see the leaves fall off is the P.Afra...it is such a beautiful plant...but I know it will eventually in time come back better then ever:)

LOL..well my man has a name for my lithops also....he calls them squirell brains:)

Mary

Denise,
I remember the first time I read your name for lithops, I about spit out my soda from laughing so hard. I have used it ever since, just not at the C&S meetings, they'd run me out on a rail ;)

Mary,
Please take the advise about common names, especially on the C&S forums. There are many of the hard core C&S growers that use nothing but, they don't like common names used as they can mean way more than one plant. Queen of the Night, for example is the common name for quite a few jungle and terrestrial night blooming cacti, all requiring different care.

I understand what everyone said about the common names. And I am taking it as a learning experience as I have said.

Just disappoints me that it had to take away from the meaning of this thread. I was just wanting to share in my joy of the new cuttings..it is my first time ever trying to root things of this size and I really like the ones I got so just was sharing. I shared the excact same thing on 2 other websites and not a single word was said about the common name issue..very likely because i DID use the botanical name as well..there was no mistaking what I was talking about. It really did not even have to be an issue.

Mary

Mary,

Yes, they're great plants and I'm happy that there are folks out there willing to share so extravagantly.

However, your initial responses to what PG and I posted were petulant.

If you don't wish to learn from me about these plants, that's OK - just let me know - there are plenty of others here who are at least as experienced, if not more, than I am and who are willing (as I was) in sharing our knowledge.

There is no personal issue with you McHarris. I am more then willing to learn from you and many others here. I am very new to this hobby and have learned so much here and on ohter websites. I have little to offer compared to most and yes i get an attitude at times(thank God for forgivness).

I will in the future not responde to things that I have a differing opinion about and that should avoid things like this.

I do appreciate correction and teaching when done in a polite and nice manor....my stuborn/defensive side however will often rebuke rudness. I have some folks here that I have developed very nice friendships with privatly and i am grateful...this forum has a wealth of knowledge and good people..along with some more onery ones..lol I likely fall into the half onery-half nice.....depending on time of month..LOL

MCHarris I welcome you knowledge and forgive me for not seeing your post as well meaning instead of defending PG.
Have a good day.

RR

RR

When I first saw the title to this thread....I had to chuckle. I thought it might be a pic of some rudely shaped cactus! They have been posted here before. LOL Nice haul on the cuttings! Enjoy them. I used to have a 20 year old "Hobbit" in the front yard. Some dirt-bag stole it. They are just beautiful when mature. Lots of sun will give them that reddish hue.