Hatiora Salicata

2024 Author: Gavin MacAdam | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-16 13:38

Hatiora salicornioides (lat. Hatiora salicornioides) - a tropical cactus growing like an epiphyte from the genus Hatiora (Latin Hatiora), which is one of four genera of the tribe Rhipsalideae (Latin Rhipsalideae) of the Cactus family (Latin Cactaceae). The plants of the genus have many funny folk names. Hatiora salicata, although it belongs to the Cactus family, does not differ in a prickly disposition, but is a compact bush with a succulent succulent stem, yellow or orange pretty flowers, fruits - a fleshy berry, and does not have leaves, which most representatives of the flora of our beautiful planet have …

What's in your name

As for the Latin name of the genus "Hatiora", there is a whole semi-detective story of his birth, told in the article on the genus "Hatiora". It also contains a dedication to one of the botanists, an Englishman by birth, Thomas Harriot, and the use of the anagram of the word "Hariota", which transformed the name into the word "Hatiora" by rearranging two letters.

The specific epithet "salicornioides" (salicornia) the plant received for its appearance, similar to herbaceous plants that are not morphological relatives, but belonging to the genus Soleros (lat. Salicornia) from the Amaranth family (lat. Amaranthaceae), which received their generic name for that that grow on very saline soils, which cannot be said about the cacti of the Hatiora genus.

Again, the appearance of the plant gives rise to the most unexpected folk names. For example, the twisted stems of the plant gave rise to the name "Dancing bones cactus" (Cactus - dancing bones), and the shape of the stem segments, reminiscent of a bottle of alcohol, gave rise to the name "Drunkard's dream".

Since plants of all four genera of the tribe Ripsalisaceae at first inexperienced glance have many external similar elements, you can find a variety of confusion in the names when Hatiora suddenly turns out to be Ripsalis, Schlumberger or Lepismium, or vice versa. But for ordinary flower growers, the name is not always more important than the beauty that all plants of the Ripsalisaceae tribe give.

Description

The Hatiora saline plant consists of numerous branched succulent stems, the length of which can reach 60 centimeters. The entire long stem consists of small segments up to three centimeters long. That is, in one stem, there are up to twenty segments, giving the stem a curved look, giving the impression of a dancing plant. Each small segment is shaped like a miniature bottle. Such an original stem gives rise to various curious folk names of Hatiora solerosova, which were described above in the text.

From the upper part of the areola at the end of the stems in the winter-spring period, yellow or orange small flowers are born, consisting, as it were, of three floors: the first floor consists of oval-elongated petals with longitudinal veins, forming a flower bed, in the center of this flower sits a flower with petals are smaller and curlier, inside which the stamens and pistil are located. A flower is a very picturesque creation of nature.

After fertilization, the flowers develop to fleshy translucent berries with a reddish tip.

Usage

In the natural conditions of the tropical forests of Brazil, Hatiora salicata is an epiphytic plant that lives at altitudes from 0 to 1850 meters. In countries with warm and humid climates, the plant is grown as an ornamental plant in open ground flower beds. Where the climate is not suitable for the heat-loving Hatiora salicata, the plant is grown indoors, creating conditions suitable for life for them. Often Hatiora salicata is grown as an ampelous ornamental plant.