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Denise Bush
Malaga
Friday, 8 November 2024, 13:32
Plant of the month for November in the Jardín Botánico La Concepción in Malaga is this stunning perennial called Odontonema tubaeforme.
It is a genus with around 26 species of evergreen perennials and shrubs native to woodland areas of tropical America.
Also known as O. strictum or O. cuspidatum, the firespike plant is a very showy plant with large, glossy green leaves, rigid, upright purple stems and spikes of cardinal red tubular flowers.
Although it is a tropical plant it will withstand light frosts but it will not tolerate drought. The soil needs to be kept moist and it needs high humidity. Firespike will enjoy extreme heat but not if it is in full sun so make sure it gets some shade in the afternoon during the height of summer.
The soil needs to be neutral to acidic with plenty of organic matter but it also needs to be free-draining; this tropical beauty is susceptible to rotting if kept too wet.
In ideal conditions, Odontnema may reach two metres in height but grown in a container it is more likely to only reach half that. It can be grown as an indoor plant but needs plenty of natural light, at least six hours a day. During the winter it can be trimmed to keep it compact but watering should be stopped. If planted in rich soil it will not need feeding but once it is a couple of years old start feeding it every four to six weeks during the growing season.
The genus name is from the Greek 'odonto' meaning 'teeth' and 'nema' meaning 'thread'. As if often the case, the relevance of the name is not clear.
Propagation is by softwood cuttings although in ideal habitats it may self seed. In parts of the South Pacific and Oceania it is classed as invasive for this reason.
In alternative medicine, extracts of the leaves are used to treat high blood pressure.
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