Transcript:
One of the second lets. I have come to love even more since moving to Arizona is portal Acharya Afra or Elephant Bush or elephant food or dwarf. Jade has a few different names, but elephant. Bush is a great, succulent because it loves full Sun. It can tolerate full Sun, even in 115 degree weather all day long and it does just fine. It stays nice and compact. The growth looks really good, and it’s still healthy, so most succulent. I know, do not tolerate heat that well other than cactus. But this one has been phenomenal. We have a bunch of it growing in our yard and it’s done extremely well. So it is rated to a zone 9 which means it can handle temperatures down to 20 degrees. Now, if it gets to be where you’re having 20 degree weather for several days back-to-back you may want to protect it with frost cloth or bring it inside, especially if it’s smaller once it’s fully established if it does get into those cooler temperatures, you might see some of the upper growth start to die, but it’ll take a little bit longer for the main plant to die away from the frost. It can also be grown indoors and surprisingly, it does fairly well, even without a grow light. You might notice that the branches start to look a little bit elongated and stretched out, but it will continue to grow even in low-light situations. Ideally, though you would have a grow light with it to help us stay nice and compact and healthy elephant. Bush is a great plant to use in arrangement. You can see it in a few different arrangements that we have here, and if you grow the variegated variety or there’s also a miniature variety, they both grow downward and outward, so they work really well in hanging baskets or if you use them as a Spiller in arrangement to go over the edge of the pot, the original variety, though it can grow up to 12 feet tall, so this can be a massive bush and where it gets. Its name Elephant Bush or elephant food is because you guessed it. Elephants actually eat it, so you can imagine that it would need to produce a lot in order to feed very many elephants, so it can get into giant bushes, but it also looks great in small containers. Something else that I love about it is it’s actually a really popular plant to use for bonsai compared to a lot of other bonsai plants ports that carry a frog grows really quickly, and you can do some really cool things with this stem to texturize it and make the trunk. Look a little bit more, Woody, So if you’re looking to get into bonsai and you’re not sure where to start. Try using Portal Acharya. Afra and I think they’ll be really pleasantly surprised with how easy it is to take care of, and also how quickly it grows and how much you can manipulate it. So this plant grows really easily from cuttings. So you simply take some scissors cut off a branch, let it dry out for a day or two and then stick it in some soil and give it some water and it will continue to grow. They’ll put off roots of its own and start developing into a giant bush. Now this has what I would say is the perfect, the perfect watering schedule for succulents. The traditional elephant Bush follows the soaked and drained method beautifully. So just make sure you soak that soil. Let it dry out completely and then water it again. Once the soil is dry and it will be a very happy plant. If you reduce the water intake, you’ll start to see the leaves will be a little bit limp and dull, and that’s a sign that it needs more water. If they start to get yellow and transparent. That’s a sign that you need to cut back. The stem can also get kind of mushy if it does get too much water. So just keep your eye out for that, but of all the succulents out there, it has been one of the most forgiving that I have worked with at least the traditional green porcelain carry. Afra, the variegated variety on the other hand, especially growing indoors. It does not get along well with me because it needs a little bit more water than its traditional green counterpart. So keep that in mind. If you’re growing the variegated variety, you may need to water it a little bit more frequently now. This is not toxic to animals or humans as you can imagine. If elephants are eating it, it’s probably fairly safe, but it is actually used in cuisine in Southern Africa. So when we found this out, I told my kids that it was edible and immediately. Of course they wanted to eat it, so we cut off a couple branches, washed it off and took a bite and they loved it often. I’ll see them like, grab a little piece and hurry and sneak it to clean it off and eat it. It has kind of a tangy taste, but you can use it. You can eat it on its own, or you can use it in salads to add just a little bit extra flavor or crunch, so this is just a really all around. Great, succulent, it’s one! I would definitely recommend if you’re new to growing succulents because it’s very forgiving. It can tolerate long periods of drought, but it can also handle a little bit more water. If you tend to water or care for your succulents, a little more frequently than most, so I highly suggest this one. One other thing to note is that it is considered a winter grower. So in the summer you’ll want to make sure you cut back on watering. Give it enough to keep it alive like I said. If you notice those leaves starting to look a little bit limp and dull, give it some water, but otherwise let it stay dry, because while it’s dormant, it won’t absorb as much water, and so it’s a lot easier for it to rot, but in the spring and fall when the temperatures are cooler, just go ahead and water it with the soaked and dry method. And you’ll be good to go. I would love to know what you’re doing with poor chili. Kerry Afra. Do you have it planted on? Its own or are you using it? More in arrangements feel free to leave a comment below and share with us. Thanks so much for watching this video. If you enjoyed it, please be sure to give it a thumbs up, hit, subscribe and share it with all of your succulent loving friends and we’ll see you next time.