Identification: Unidentified Vegetative Contraption

I do not know what plant this is, living in my south-facing bathroom window. Every day, I find it leaning towards the window, either due to having lost some rootage upon being poorly divisioned, or the fact that even my light-y-est window has not enough ultraviolet satisfaction to offer it. This should be easy for you experienced plant recognizers -- I have seen these plants many times before. I acquired it from a hasty division of a more expansive plant of this variety. I had hoped to avoid enlisting your brain cells, but my attempts to identify it through google search using what terms that I could muster - uh, vaguely pickle-shaped spindly green cactus type or perhaps succulent-ish - failed to yield any firm results. The best I could come up with is maybe pickleweed, but I get the feeling that is not a correct answer, and so here I am, using my lifeline...

 

Check out Hatiora salicornioides.

Like the 'contraption' comparison! ;-)

 

Great, thanks. After some reading, it appears that its perpetual leaning towards the window isn't necessarily a sign of any pathology, it's just what this plant does. I should probably put it in some proper cactus mix, though.

I have a policy of only naming strange looking succulents. I think I will name this one "Toaster." Toaster, Hatiora salicornioides extraordinaire. It's got a ring to it.

 

Maybe it's the photo, but yours looks different then my Hatiora salicornioides, which has a lot of small sections, and is a darker green color. Sometimes it will bloom little yellow flowers.

 

I think you should call it "Contraption"

;-))

 

Toaster reminds me much more of a young Euphorbia tirucalli, personally...

 

Ok, i can't get a better picture at this time, because I'm not at home. Toaster does have smaller segments, they are just leaning away from the camera in the picture I have. I will say that none of the segments have the characteristic "bottle" shape of Hatiora salicornioides. In the pictures I've seen, these seem to be inconsistently present, so I don't know if that is just a feature of the adult plant or not.

I'm not 100% sure about euphorbia tirucalli, as the segments in the picture I have looked at appear to be of the lengthy variety almost exclusively, and Toaster definitely has a lot more "needles" ...if you want to call them that.

What about Rhipsalis cereuscula? I came across this one while looking at the other two, and while it doesn't seem like a perfect match, it might be a possibility.

I will try to take a couple of better pictures of Toaster when I get home.

PS - While I do like the name "Contraption," I think I will save it for when I have a sunny window and a Dionaea muscipula. Of course, I will have to name it "ConTraption," with the proper capitalization. I think that would be most appropriate.

 

Euphorbia tirucalli can be ruled out by it's toxic milky latex(sap).

HTH
Chris

 

Hatiora and Rhipsalis are close relatives of each other, so it could well be the other.

 

Alright. I think Toaster is Hatiora. Here are a couple more pics. They are as clear of pictures as I could take with my pda/camera phone (My real camera has no working batteries, and is a $200 shiny paperweight).

Anyways, I have taken the liberty of circling what are bottle shaped segments on the lil fella. Hard to see precisely, since my camera apparently has a resolution of 0.000001 megapixels, but it's the best I could do.

I guess this explains my overwhelming desire to get back on the sauce ever since I brought this one home...

 

You sure that circle's not a piece of day-old spaghetti stuck to your camera lens?

 

Not 100%, to be honest...

 

My favorite thing is that there is an actual toaster in this picture. <3!

 

He's young. The way I see it, he needs a role model.

 

A bread roll model, to be toasted??