Aeschynanthus 'Black Pagoda' is a hybrid of A. longicaulis. I don't know what the other parent is. They both have the mottled leaves though the pattern is stronger on longicaulis. It used to be that the only commercial plants of this type were 'Black Pagoda' but now longicaulis ia often seen in shops and even at Home Depot, while BP is not seen that much anymore (at least in my experience). Another difference is that the species is fairly compact while BP is a rank grower, with large thick leaves and long internodes. It has orange flowers while longicaulis has green flowers. You may find longicaulis still referred to by its former name, A. marmorata. Both the species and the hybrid will get purplish tinges to the leaf backs. Your cuttings should root easily.

Jon

Thank you Jon for the information! I will keep an eye out on how it grows and the flower color. The originally plant was bought at Lowe's from what I understand. Personally, I'm hoping for the green flowers. It's already sent out about a dimes worth of roots in water and grown taller, about an inch but I'll wait and pot it up in the spring.

Thanks again.
Billy Rae

I need to thank you both for bringing this up lol! I had to get something 'garden-related' for a Christmas gift exchange, and when I spotted A. longicaulis I remembered this post and bought it (for me--it cost too much for the exchange limit!) I haven't had it for years, and then knew it is marmoratus, but recognized it immediately, probably because of this! Thank you!
Nancy

Good for you Nancy. After writing about this I remembered my own little plant and repotted it. Its had such a tortured existance. First it came to me as a ziplock bag of cutings. They sat around for two months before I put them down. Since the cuttings were fairly dry, with some weak attempts at putting out roots in the bag, I potted them up in NZ Moss, enclosed and under lights. They rooted nicely but later on when I was ill I really dried them out. I saved one pot of cuttings and in the last six months they have gotten good care and have grown. So, finally I repotted them. Since I couldn't get all the moss off the roots without doing a lot of damage I decided to try an experiment. I potted up the ball of moss and roots in a larger square pot, with the top of the moss above the soil line and put my regular potting mix around. Usually it is recommended not to put plants in moss into soil without removing the moss, but I wanted to see what would happen if I kept the top of the moss above the soil, so that air could keept the moss roots nice and airy.

By the way, I think we are all growing the "kew" clone of longicaulis. This clone showed up in the late 80's MOL and is a distinct improvement over the old clone. It has stronger markings, more purple color on the leaf backs and seems to be more compact. The old hybrids were done with the old clone, so a new round of hybridizing would be a good idea for us.

When my plant gets going and flowering I plan to cross it with batakiorum, another green flowered species. This cross may be a total bust but I can't help but be fascinated by making a green x green flower cross. My batakiorum is a really neat plant. It also went through a long period of neglect and now that it is being cared for has set all kinds of buds. New stems have no buds but some older stems are budded up and down the stems with clusters at each node. Otherwise it is a big grower with branches that want to be four feet long, large leaves and long internodes. Its leaves are plain large and green but have a blush of purple on the undersides. It is fairly new to cultivation, having been found somewhere by Ingrid Lindskog and brought into the gesneriad society for cultivation. I will be setting seed for the seed fund.

Jon

My lipstick is growing up, but the leaves aren't tubing. How long does it take for them to grow like the long tubing branches beside them?
Also, we've been having a heat wave in NYC, so I don't think the plant has been too happy with the hot range. would that be the answer for so many brown/dead leaves? Do I need to fertilize? If so, how?
Thank you so much!

Alison,

yes, you need to fertilize and yes, if it is exposed to direct sun - the leaves will burn. I do not think it is heat that is really bad - most probable it is a direct afternoon sun.

This "tubing" thing is not a branch - it is a flower. When the plant is happy - it will bloom and bloom a lot.

Lipstick plant - aeschynanthus - belongs to the gesneriad family, it is an african violet relative. There are FAQ on an African Violet forum - there is a link to it at the top of the page. If you read this information you will understand more what kind of soil, fertilizer and light your plant needs to be happy.

Most gesneriads like loose humid but not too wet soil, high humidity and bright indirect sun. African Violet fertilizer at 1/8 - 1/4 of teaspoon per gallon at every watering is a good way to feed them. They are incredibly rewarding if you learn how to grow them right. There is The Gesneriad Society
website www.aggs.org and another one with lots of pics gesneriads.ca (gesneriads.ca/aeschyn4.htm - your lipstick in bloom).

Good Luck - and may be your question will be the beginning of a life long interest.
Irina