Cyphostemmas are prized among caudiciform collectors for their knobby, succulent stems topped by thick, succulent leaves and bright red, grape-like fruits revealing its affinities in the grape family Vitaceae. The most popular and commonly cultivated species is C. juttae native to Namibia. It can be seen regularly in mild climate landscapes as in southern California where it is perfectly tolerant of winter rain, despite being a summer grower, and several degrees of frost. Its pachycaulous, goiterous trunk, eventually as large as a person, is a novelty and makes an interesting sculptural addition to a succulent garden. It is a bit of a mystery why C. currorii isn’t as commonly encountered. It differs from C. juttae in having trifoliolate and velvety leaves. It can be even larger, up to 10 m, and, though it ranges further north into Angola, may be more hardy, as it grows in parts of Namibia where frost is not unknown (unlike C. juttae). Perhaps small plants simply haven’t been readily available. We aim to remedy that with this offering of HBG 103792, plants grown from seed from Inge Pehlemann’s garden in Windhoek, Namibia. $10.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 87 (3), May - June, 2015