365Caws is now in its 14th year of publication, and was originally intended to end after 365 days. It has sometimes been difficult for me to find new material, particularly during the winter months, but now as I enter my own twilight years, I cannot guarantee that I will be able to provide daily posts. It is my hope that along the way I may have inspired someone to a greater curiosity about the natural world. If so, I can rest, content in the knowledge that my work here has been done.
Thursday, September 15, 2016
Huernia Zebrina, Lifesaver Plant
Day 338: Huernia zebrina (Lifesaver Plant, named for the donut-like structure in the flower's center) is rapidly turning into one of my favourite houseplants. In the first place, as a member of the cactus family, it's very forgiving of neglectful watering even though it's lived in a hot window all summer. If that didn't win me over, its enthusiasm in putting on a show of bizarrely shaped flowers over a fairly long span of weeks would move it into the top ranks. The blossoms only last a few days once they've opened, but the development of them is fascinating to watch. From the tiny bud just below the dime in the upper image to reach the origami-like star of the middle phase requires almost two weeks. When the flower finally bursts open and the petals furl back from the center, its unusual form is a traffic-stopper. I have yet to dissect one to investigate the interior of the "lifesaver," but I am intensely curious about its role in the plant's biology.
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