Kalanchoe pinnata
Common name
air plant
Synonyms
Bryophyllum pinnatum (Lam.) Oken
Family
Crassulaceae
Flora category
Vascular – Exotic
Structural class
Herbs - Dicotyledons other than Composites
Conservation status
Not applicable
Habitat
Terrestrial. Grows behind beaches on sand, forming dense stands in open places, also occurs in light shade under forest.
Detailed description
A succulent that grows to about 1 m tall, with basal rosette. Stem is purple with green flecks, becoming slightly woody. Leaves are fleshy and alternate, coarsely toothed but rounded, edges of leaves are purple. Flowers occur in corymb/raceme and are bell-like and pendulous. Flower has four fused sepals with pointed tips; four fused petals are red and pointed at tip and green at base. Eight stamens with green filaments and purple anthers; four pistils stuck very close together are much shorter than stamen.
Similar taxa
Can de distinguished from B. delagoense by the flat broadly elliptic leaves, uniform green or reddish-green, with prominent purple crenate margins.
Flowering
November, December, January, February, April, May
Flower colours
Red/Pink
Year naturalised
1977
Origin
Probably Madagascar but long naturalised in other tropical regions
Etymology
pinnata: From the Latin pinna ‘feather’, in botany pinnatus ‘pinnate’ refers an arrangement of leaves, veins or branches in rows along a central axis, similar to the structure of a feather.
Reason For Introduction
Ornamental
Reproduction
Flowers freely, but seed is doubtfully fertile. Probably vegetative spread.
Dispersal
Water, gravity.
Tolerances
Tolerates coastal conditions. Probably not hardy enough for southern regions of mainland NZ.