Elephant Bush (Portulacaria) with blue leaves?

Discussion in 'Plants: Identification' started by Daniella, May 4, 2015.

  1. Daniella

    Daniella Member

    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Ventura County, USA
    This was the most interesting plant I saw on a garden tour yesterday. I've never seen such blue leaves on a succulent. See photo, showing the plant in a 30 centimeter diameter pot. It's only a few centimeters high.

    The owner said it was a kind of jade plant. She said that it has to be left in the shade to stay blue, otherwise it turns green in the sun. It looks very similar to my Portulacaria afra. I'm guessing it's some kind of Portulacaria.

    Can anyone name it, please? Then I can try buying it online, or maybe get a nursery to order it for me.

    The owner couldn't remember exactly where she bought it, except that it was at a nursery in Long Beach, Southern California.

    Thanks for any help with this.
     

    Attached Files:

  2. Eric La Fountaine

    Eric La Fountaine Contributor Forums Moderator 10 Years

    Messages:
    3,511
    Likes Received:
    235
    Location:
    sw USA
  3. Daniella

    Daniella Member

    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Ventura County, USA
    Thanks for introducing me to the land of dyed succulents. I've seen dyed flowers, but never succulents.

    It certainly looked dyed/fake. And the color looked like the blue in the Echeveria link you gave. Thanks for that.

    If you look at a close up of my photo, you can see the demarkation lines between the blue and green on a few leaves. The line between the two colors is rather straight/sharp, so it looks fake.

    But when I asked the owner about it, she replied that it has to be left in the shade to stay blue, insinuating that it was natural. Maybe I was duped!
     

    Attached Files:

  4. Junglekeeper

    Junglekeeper Esteemed Contributor 10 Years

    Messages:
    6,053
    Likes Received:
    639
    Location:
    Vancouver BC Canada
    What does a cross-section of one of these leaves look like? That would determined whether it is dyed or painted.

    If the plant was dyed, perhaps increased photosynthesis causes some of the dye to be transported out of the plant tissue or sunlight breaks down the dye.
     
  5. Daniella

    Daniella Member

    Messages:
    5
    Likes Received:
    0
    Location:
    Ventura County, USA
    Hello Junglekeeper. I saw this on a garden tour and didn't see a cross-section of the leaves.
     

Share This Page