All Topics  
Kalanchoe

 
Kalanchoe

 
   Email Print
   Bookmark   Link
 

 

Kalanchoe
 
 
  Topics Kalanchoe Topic Home

Kalanchoe, also written Kalanchöe or Kalanchoë, is a genus of about 125 species of tropical, succulent flowering plant
Flowering plant

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of Embryophytes. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of Spermatophyte....
s in the Family Crassulaceae
Crassulaceae

The Crassulaceae, or orpine family, is a family of dicotyledons. They store water in their succulent leaves. They are found worldwide, but mostly occur in the Northern Hemisphere and southern Africa, typically in dry and/or cold areas where water may be scarce....
, mainly native to the Old World
Old World

The Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans, Asians, and Africans in the 15th century....
 but with a few species now growing wild in the New World
New World

The New World is one of the names used for the non-Eurasian/non-African parts of the Earth, specifically the Americas and Australasia. When the term originated in the late 15th century, the Americas were new to the Europeans, who previously thought of the world as consisting only of Europe, Asia, and Africa ....
 following introduction.

Most are shrub
Shrub

A shrub or bush is a horticulture rather than strictly Botany category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall....
s or perennial
Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
 herbaceous
Herbaceous

A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaf and stem that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. A herbaceous plant may be Annual plant, Biennial plant or Perennial plant....
 plants, but a few are annual
Annual plant

An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates flowers and dies in one year. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed....
 or biennial
Biennial plant

A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots , then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months....
.






Discussion
Ask a question about 'Kalanchoe'
Start a new discussion about 'Kalanchoe'
Answer questions from other users
Full Discussion Forum



Encyclopedia


Kalanchoe Veg
Kalanchoe, also written Kalanchöe or Kalanchoë, is a genus of about 125 species of tropical, succulent flowering plant
Flowering plant

The flowering plants or angiosperms are the most widespread group of Embryophytes. The flowering plants and the gymnosperms are the only extant groups of Spermatophyte....
s in the Family Crassulaceae
Crassulaceae

The Crassulaceae, or orpine family, is a family of dicotyledons. They store water in their succulent leaves. They are found worldwide, but mostly occur in the Northern Hemisphere and southern Africa, typically in dry and/or cold areas where water may be scarce....
, mainly native to the Old World
Old World

The Old World consists of those parts of Earth known to Europeans, Asians, and Africans in the 15th century....
 but with a few species now growing wild in the New World
New World

The New World is one of the names used for the non-Eurasian/non-African parts of the Earth, specifically the Americas and Australasia. When the term originated in the late 15th century, the Americas were new to the Europeans, who previously thought of the world as consisting only of Europe, Asia, and Africa ....
 following introduction.

Most are shrub
Shrub

A shrub or bush is a horticulture rather than strictly Botany category of woody plant, distinguished from a tree by its multiple stems and lower height, usually less than 5-6 m tall....
s or perennial
Perennial plant

A perennial plant or perennial is a plant that lives for more than two years. When used by gardeners or horticulturalists, this term applies specifically to perennial herbaceous plants....
 herbaceous
Herbaceous

A herbaceous plant is a plant that has leaf and stem that die down at the end of the growing season to the soil level. A herbaceous plant may be Annual plant, Biennial plant or Perennial plant....
 plants, but a few are annual
Annual plant

An annual plant is a plant that usually germinates flowers and dies in one year. True annuals will only live longer than a year if they are prevented from setting seed....
 or biennial
Biennial plant

A biennial plant is a flowering plant that takes two years to complete its biological lifecycle. In the first year the plant grows leaves, stems, and roots , then it enters a period of dormancy over the colder months....
. The largest, Kalanchoe beharensis
Kalanchoe beharensis

Kalanchoe beharensis is a plant species in the succulent genus Kalanchoe, endemic to Madagascar.It is a fairly large shrub in stature, up to 6 m tall....
 from Madagascar
Madagascar

Madagascar, or Republic of Madagascar , is an island nation in the Indian Ocean off the southeastern coast of Africa. The main island, also called Madagascar, is the List of islands by area, and is home to 5% of the world's plant and animal species, of which more than 80% are Endemism to Madagascar....
, can reach 6 m tall, but most species are less than 1 m tall.

Members of Kalanchoe genus are characterized by opening their flowers by growing new cells on the inner surface of the petal
Petal

A petal is one member or part of the Corolla of a flower. The corolla is the name for all of the petals of a flower; the inner perianth whorl, term used when this is not the same in appearance as the outermost whorl and is used to attract pollinators based on its advertising coloration....
s to force them outwards, and on the outside of the petals to close them.

The genus was first described by the botanist Michel Adanson
Michel Adanson

Michel Adanson was a France natural history of Scotland descent.Adanson was born at Aix-en-Provence. His family moved to Paris on 1730. After leaving the College Sainte Barbe he was employed in the cabinets of Rene Antoine Ferchault de Reaumur and Bernard de Jussieu, as well as in the Jardin des Plantes....
 in 1763. Reportedly, the name came "from the Chinese
Chinese language

Chinese or the Sinitic language is a language family consisting of language mutually unintelligible to varying degrees. Originally the indigenous languages spoken by the Han Chinese in China, it forms one of the two branches of Sino-Tibetan languages of languages....
 name for one of the species." This Chinese species is thought to have been either Kalanchoe ceratophylla or Kalanchoe spathulata. The genus Bryophyllum was described by Salisbury
Richard Anthony Salisbury

Richard Anthony Salisbury Fellow of the Royal Society was a United Kingdom botanist. He was born in Leeds, England, the son of Richard Markham....
 in 1806 and the genus Kitchingia was created by Baker
John Gilbert Baker

John Gilbert Baker was an England botanist.Baker was born in Guisborough. He worked at the library and herbarium of Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew between 1866 and 1899, and was keeper of the herbarium from 1890 to 1899....
 in 1881. Kitchingia is now regarded as a synonym for Kalanchoe, whereas some botanists treat Bryophyllum as a separate genus.

Cultivation and uses

These plants are cultivated as ornamental houseplants and rock or "succulent" garden plants. They are popular because of their ease of propagation, low water requirements, and wide variety of flower colors typically borne in clusters well above the vegetative growth. The section
Section (botany)

In botany, a section is a low-level taxonomic rank directly below subgenus. See rank and rank . It is typically used to help organize very large genus, which may have hundreds of species....
 Bryophyllum
Bryophyllum

The Bryophyllums are a section in the plant genus Kalanchoe of the Crassulaceae family . There are about twenty to thirty species in the group, native originally of South Africa, Madagascar, and Asia....
 - formerly an independent genus - contains species such as the "Air plant" Kalanchoe pinnata
Kalanchoe pinnata

Kalanchoe pinnata is a succulent plant native to Madagascar. It is distinctive for the profusion of miniature plantlets that form on the margins of its leaves, a trait it has in common with the other members of the Bryophyllum section of the Kalanchoe genus....
. In these plants, new individuals develop vegetatively
Vegetative reproduction

Vegetative reproduction is a type of asexual reproduction for plants, and is also called vegetative propagation, vegetative multiplication, or vegetative cloning....
 as plantlets, also known as bulbils or gemmae, at indents along the leaves. These young plants eventually drop off and take root. No males have been found of one species of this genus which does flower and produce seeds, and it is commonly called, the Mother of Thousands.

Diseases


Toxicity and traditional medicine

In common with other Crassulaceae (such as the genera Tylecodon
Tylecodon

Tylecodon is a genus of plant in family Crassulaceae. It contains the following species :* Tylecodon aridimontanus, G.Will.* Tylecodon aurusbergensis, G.Will. & Van Jaarsv....
, Cotyledon
Cotyledon (genus)

Cotyledon is a genus of the Crassulaceae family .Species include:* Cotyledon chrysantha* Cotyledon elisae* Cotyledon orbiculata ? Pig's Ear, Round-Leafed Navel-Wort...
 and Adromischus
Adromischus

Adromischus is a genus of easily propagated leaf succulents from the Crassulaceae family.Adromischus are endemic to southern Africa.The name comes from the ancient Greek "adros" et "mischos" ....
), some Kalanchoe species contain bufadienolide cardiac glycosides which can cause cardiac poisoning
Poisoning

Poisoning may mean:*For biology toxicity, see toxin and poison* Catalyst poisoning* Nuclear poison* Chinese_food_therapy#Cantonese_classification_of_food, a classification in Cantonese food...
, particularly in grazing animals. This is a particular problem in the native range of many Kalanchoe species in the Karroo region of South Africa, where the resulting animal disease is known as krimpsiekte (shrinking disease) or as cotyledonosis. Similar poisonings have also occurred in Australia.

In traditional medicine, Kalanchoe species have been used to treat ailments such as infections, rheumatism and inflammation. Kalanchoe extracts also have immunosuppressive
Immunosuppressant

An immunosuppressant is a substance that performs immunosuppression of the immune system. They may either be exogenous, as immunosuppressive drugs, or endogenous, as e....
 effects. Kalanchoe pinnata
Kalanchoe pinnata

Kalanchoe pinnata is a succulent plant native to Madagascar. It is distinctive for the profusion of miniature plantlets that form on the margins of its leaves, a trait it has in common with the other members of the Bryophyllum section of the Kalanchoe genus....
 has been recorded in Trinidad and Tobago as being used as a traditional treatment for hypertension.

A variety of bufadienolide compounds have been isolated from various Kalanchoe species. Five different bufadienolides have been isolated from Kalanchoe daigremontiana
Kalanchoe daigremontiana

Kalanchoe daigremontiana syn. Bryophyllum daigremontianum also called Devil's Backbone, Alligator Plant, Mexican Hat Plant or Mother of Thousands is a succulent plant native to Madagascar....
. Two of these, daigremontianin
Daigremontianin

Daigremontianin is a bufadienolide. Bufadienolides are steroids and cardiac glycoside aglycones that are similar to cardenolides, differing only in the structure of the C-17 substituent on the D ring....
 and bersaldegenin 1,3,5-orthoacetate, have been shown to have a pronounced sedative
Sedative

A sedative is a substance that induces sedation by reducing irritability or excitement.At higher doses it may result in slurred speech, staggering gait , poor judgment, and slow, uncertain reflexes....
 effect. They also have the strong positive inotropic effect associated with cardiac glycosides, and with greater doses an increasing effect on the central nervous system
Central nervous system

The central nervous system is the part of the nervous system that functions to coordinate the activity of all parts of the bodies of multicellular organisms....
.

Bufadienolide compounds isolated from Kalanchoe pinnata
Kalanchoe pinnata

Kalanchoe pinnata is a succulent plant native to Madagascar. It is distinctive for the profusion of miniature plantlets that form on the margins of its leaves, a trait it has in common with the other members of the Bryophyllum section of the Kalanchoe genus....
 include bryophillin A which showed strong anti-tumor promoting activity, and bersaldegenin-3-acetate and bryophillin C which were less active. Bryophillin C also showed insecticidal properties.

Selected species

  • Kalanchoe adelae
  • Kalanchoe arborescens
    Kalanchoe arborescens

    Kalanchoe arborescens is a species of Kalanchoe, native to Madagascar....
  • Kalanchoe beauverdii
  • Kalanchoe beharensis
    Kalanchoe beharensis

    Kalanchoe beharensis is a plant species in the succulent genus Kalanchoe, endemic to Madagascar.It is a fairly large shrub in stature, up to 6 m tall....
     - Velvet Leaf, Felt Plant, Felt Bush
  • Kalanchoe bentii
  • Kalanchoe blossfeldiana
    Kalanchoe blossfeldiana

    Kalanchoe blossfeldiana is a commonly cultivated house plant of the genus Kalanchoe. They are succulent plants and can grow up to 12". The flowers consist of four petals and can be red, purple, orange, yellow and white and the plant may flower all year round....
     - Flaming Katy
  • Kalanchoe bouvetii
  • Kalanchoe bracteata
  • Kalanchoe campanulata
  • Kalanchoe crenata
  • Kalanchoe crundallii
  • Kalanchoe daigremontiana
    Kalanchoe daigremontiana

    Kalanchoe daigremontiana syn. Bryophyllum daigremontianum also called Devil's Backbone, Alligator Plant, Mexican Hat Plant or Mother of Thousands is a succulent plant native to Madagascar....
     - Devil's Backbone, Mexican-hat Plant, Mother of Thousands
  • Kalanchoe delagoensis
    Kalanchoe delagoensis

    'Kalanchoe delagoensis' is a succulent plant native to Madagascar. In common with the other members of the Kalanchoe_sect._Bryophyllum section of the genus Kalanchoe, K....
     - Chandelier Plant, Mother of Millions, Mother of Thousands
  • Kalanchoe dinklagei
  • Kalanchoe eriophylla
  • Kalanchoe farinacea
    Kalanchoe farinacea

    Kalanchoe farinacea is a species of plant in the Crassulaceae family. It is Endemism to the Yemeni island of Socotra. Its natural habitat is subtropical or tropical dry shrubland at an altitude of 100-800m....
  • Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi
    Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi

    Kalanchoe fedtschenkoi is a species of Kalanchoe....
     - Amethyst Scallops
  • Kalanchoe figuereidoi
  • Kalanchoe flammea
  • Kalanchoe gastonis-bonnieri - Donkey Ears, Life Plant
  • Kalanchoe glaucescens
  • Kalanchoe gracilipes
  • Kalanchoe grandidieri
  • Kalanchoe grandiflora
  • Kalanchoe hildebrantii - Silver Teaspoons
  • Kalanchoe jongmansii
  • Kalanchoe kewensis
  • Kalanchoe laciniata
  • Kalanchoe lateritia
  • Kalanchoe laxiflora
  • Kalanchoe linearifolia
  • Kalanchoe longiflora
  • Kalanchoe macrochlamys
  • Kalanchoe manginii
  • Kalanchoe marnieriana
  • Kalanchoe marmorata - Penwiper
  • Kalanchoe millottii
  • Kalanchoe miniata
  • Kalanchoe nyikae
  • Kalanchoe obtusa
  • Kalanchoe orgyalis
    Kalanchoe orgyalis

    Kalanchoe orgyalis is a species of the succulent genus Kalanchoe, in the family Crassulaceae....
  • Kalanchoe peltata
  • Kalanchoe petitiana
  • Kalanchoe pinnata
    Kalanchoe pinnata

    Kalanchoe pinnata is a succulent plant native to Madagascar. It is distinctive for the profusion of miniature plantlets that form on the margins of its leaves, a trait it has in common with the other members of the Bryophyllum section of the Kalanchoe genus....
     - Life Plant, Miracle Leaf, Air Plant, Goethe Plant
  • Kalanchoe porphyrocalyx
  • Kalanchoe prolifera
  • Kalanchoe pubescens
  • Kalanchoe pumila
  • Kalanchoe quartiniana
  • Kalanchoe rhombopilosa - Pies from Heaven
  • Kalanchoe robusta
    Kalanchoe robusta

    Kalanchoe robusta is a species of plant in the Crassulaceae family. It is Endemism to the Yemen island of Socotra. Its natural habitat is on rocky slopes and amongst limestone boulders in dwarf shrubland and low succulent shrubland at an altitude of 300?750m....
  • Kalanchoe rolandi-bonapartei
  • Kalanchoe rosei
  • Kalanchoe rotundifolia
  • Kalanchoe schizophylla
  • Kalanchoe serrata
  • Kalanchoe sexangularis
  • Kalanchoe streptantha
  • Kalanchoe suarezensis
  • Kalanchoe synsepala - Cup Kalanchoe, Walking Kalanchoe
  • Kalanchoe synsepala f. dissecta - Cup Kalanchoe, Walking Kalanchoe
  • Kalanchoe thyrsiflora
    Kalanchoe thyrsiflora

    Kalanchoe thyrsiflora is a species of Kalanchoe, native to South Africa. A succulent plant producing a stalk about 1m tall, dying back after flowering....
     - Paddle Plant, Flapjacks, Desert Cabbage, White Lady, Geelplakkie, Meelplakkie, Plakkie
  • Kalanchoe tomentosa - Panda Plant
  • Kalanchoe tubiflora - Chandelier Plant, Mother of Millions, Mother of Thousands
  • Kalanchoe uniflora
  • Kalanchoe velutina
  • Kalanchoe viguieri


    		•