ISI 2025-20. Echeveria ‘Madiba’ P. Serrano

This remarkable hybrid came to our attention only recently. It has proven to be a clean grower, easily propagated from leaves but matures slowly into a blemish free rosette to 6" across. What is remarkable is the firmness of the leaves, more like the tubercles of an Ariocarpus than the usually soft-fleshy echeverias. We acquired the plant from a local vendor under the name ‘Silver Ruffles’, coined by another grower who thought it was too good not to have a cultivar name. This was in reference to the opalescent coloring and the leaf margins that become more undulate in mature plants. We were able to trace the source of the plant back to one of the largest wholesale nurseries in Vista, CA, Western Cactus Growers. According to Thomas Britsch, President of Western Cactus, they acquired it from a distributor in Kenya as Echeveria 'Madiba'. The cultivar name is the Xhosa clan to which Nelson Mandela belonged and was also used as his nickname. The cultivar name was chosen in his honor, a fitting name reflecting the plants endurance and dignified bearing. E. ‘Madiba’ is a chance hybrid that originated in the nursery of Paco Serrano in Spain. It was found among seedlings of E. lilacina, but it is uncertain whether that is the seed parent. The pollen parent is also a matter of conjecture, but the epidermal character and the plants hardiness suggest E. agavoides. We offer rooted plants of HBG 142591, $10.