Plant Highlights
Plant Highlights
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Mackaya bella
forest bell bush, blouklokkiesbos
Highlight Month:
May
Nativity:
South Africa
Growth Habit:
Mackaya bella is a handsome evergreen shrub that erupts in bell-shaped, lavender flowers in mid-spring to early summer.
M. bella has the potential to reach 6-8 feet tall and wide but can be pruned hard to control its size. It grows as an upright multi-stemmed shrub and makes a great backdrop plant or screen in the garden.
The specific epithet, bella, refers to the beautiful secund flowers borne upright on one side of the terminal raceme. The flowers are pale lavender, funnel-shaped, and have fine dark purple lines directing pollinators to the nectar. After pollination, the fruit develops as an upright club-shaped dehiscent capsule with two seeds. The evergreen leaves are dark green and glossy with small tufts of hair on the undersides at the vein axils. These hairy spots are called domatia and are thought to serve as “little houses” for symbiotic insects and mites.
Growing Requirements:
It prefers shade, regular summer water and is hardy to USDA Zones 9a-11. It can be grown in slightly colder climates but may die back to the ground in areas with freezing temperatures.
Features:
It is a member of the acanthus family (Acanthaceae), a large family of 209 genera and about 2500 species. The genus Mackaya contains five species, all native to Asia, except for Mackaya bella, from South Africa. In habitat, it grows as an understory shrub or small tree along streams. The Afrikaans name, blouklokkiesbos translates to bluebell bush/forest.
Where at Lotusland:
Fern Garden
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Schotia afra var. afra
Karoo boer-bean, Karoohuilboerboon
Highlight Month:
April
Nativity:
Namibia and western South Africa
Growth Habit:
Schotia afra is a small evergreen tree native to Namibia and western South Africa. It blooms in the spring and summer with masses of fucshia-red flowers dripping with nectar, a popular stopover for bees and birds. The leaves are pinnately compound and lack a terminal leaflet. S. afra develops a rounded dense canopy, reaching 15-25 feet tall and 15-30 feet wide.
Growing Requirements:
It prefers full sun, is hardy to 20-25° F, and is very drought tolerant, requiring little to no supplemental irrigation water once established.
Features:
Schotia afra is a member of the legume family (Fabaceae) and produces beaked pods with large, rounded seeds inside. The seeds are edible and are called boerboon in Afrikaans which translates to “farmer’s bean.” Another common name, Karoohuilboerboon, references the Karoo region. Huil translates to crying or weeping, describing the copious nectar.
There are four species in the genus Schotia, all native to southern Africa. The genus name honors Richard van der Schot, head gardener of Schönbrunn Palace in Vienna, Austria. The specific epithet, afra, denotes its nativity in Africa. There are two varieties of this species; var. afra with a coastal distribution, and var. angustifolia which is found inland and has narrower leaflets.
Where at Lotusland:
Lotusland’s Cycad Garden is home to S. afra var. afra, originally from the UCSB Biology Greenhouses. This specimen was planted on July 15, 1992. S. afra var. angustifolia can be viewed in Santa Barbara at both Orpet and Franceschi Parks. Francesco Franceschi is credited with introducing this species into cultivation in the United States.
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Lecanopteris scandens
fragrant fern
Highlight Month:
March
Nativity:
New Zealand, eastern Australia, and Lord Howe Island
Growth Habit:
It can grow either terrestrially or epiphytically as seen in Lotusland’s Fern Garden where it ascends the trunk of an Australian tree fern (Cyathea cooperi) and equally thrives in the soil below.
Lecanopteris scandens is referred to as the fragrant fern because the fronds emit a musky odor when crushed. The evergreen fronds are pinnatifid (cut half to three-fourths of the way to the rachis) with deep u-shaped sinuses. Fronds on juvenile plants may be entire (lacking lobes). Ferns reproduce by spore, produced in sporangia, which are held in clusters called sori. The sori on L. scandens are round. The genus name comes from the Greek lekane, meaning basin or dish, referencing the concave sori found in some species in the genus, and pteris, meaning fern. The specific epithet, scandens, references its climbing habit.
Growing Requirements:
Lecanopteris scandens has medium light and moisture needs and can also grow in a hanging basket.
Features:
The Pteridophyte Phylogeny Group lists this species under the genus Lecanopteris, but it was previously listed under Microsorum, Dendroconche, and Polypodium. The genus Lecanopteris previously only included the “ant ferns” that house colonies of ants in inflated rhizomes, but it was expanded in 2021 to include 24 accepted species.
Lotusland’s accession of L. scandens was acquired in 1998 as Microsorum scandens from Barbara Joe Hoshizaki (1928-2012), co-author of the Fern Grower’s Manual and former professor of biology at Los Angeles City College and curator of ferns at the UCLA herbarium.
Where at Lotusland:
Fern Garden
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Hardenbergia violacea ‘Happy Wanderer’
lilac vine, purple coral pea, false sasparilla
Highlight Month:
February
Nativity:
Hardenbergia is a genus of three species, H. violacea, H. comptoniana, and H. perbrevidens, all endemic to Australia. H. violacea is from eastern Australia. This cultivar originates from the Australian National Botanic Garden in Canberra and was selected in 1978 for its vigorous climbing habit and large leaves.
Growth Habit:
Hardenbergia violacea ‘Happy Wanderer’ is a delightful climbing vine with small purple pea flowers appearing in winter/early spring. Individual stems may reach over 16 feet in length. There are several cultivars of Hardenbergia violacea, some growing as clambering groundcovers and others selected for flower color.
All Hardenbergia are members of the pea family, Fabaceae, and have typical pea flowers with five petals – a “standard’ (upper petal), the “keel” (two fused lower petals), and two “wings” on either side. The pea family is the third largest plant family in the world, after the sunflower family (Asteraceae) and the orchid family (Orchidaceae). Normally, plants in the pea family have compound tri-foliate leaves, made of three leaflets. H. violacea differs from the two other Hardenbergia species because the two lower leaflets are reduced to vestigial leaflets at the base of the middle leaf, making the leaves appear simple. Botanists describe this as a unifoliate compound leaf.
Growing Requirements:
This species prefers sun to light shade, is tolerant of a wide range of soil types, from sand to clay, and is relatively drought tolerant once established.
Features:
Lilac vine blooms from late winter through early spring with dense, cascading clusters of small pinkish purple flowers. It makes a good screen for fences, or for an impressive winter flower display on a trellis.
Where at Lotusland:
Hardenbergia grows on the Kiosk in the Australian Garden.
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Magnolia × alba
white champaca, white sandalwood
Highlight Month:
January
Nativity:
Asia
Growth Habit:
Lotusland’s Japanese Garden houses many winter-fragrant plants including Osmanthus fragrans, Camellia ‘Yume’, Camellia ‘Minato-no-akebono,’ and Chimonanthus praecox. Another to add to the list is Magnolia × alba, a presumed cross between Magnolia champaca (yellow champaca) and M. montana. This hybrid produces pleasingly fragrant white flowers from mid-winter to early summer. M. champaca differs in having yellow flowers with wider tepals and famously used in manufacturing the 1929 Joy perfume by Jean Patou, the world’s second best-selling perfume after Chanel No. 5. M. champaca is native from southern India to central China and southeast Asia. While the hybrid rarely makes fruit, M. champaca is known to produce viable seed, and both can easily be propagated from cuttings.
Both white and yellow champaca are commonly grown in California as far north as the Bay Area and were likely brought to the United States by Asian immigrants because of their cultural significance; the flowers are commonly floated in dishes of water at Buddhist temples. They are hardy to USDA Zones 10-11, are slow growing, but will reach 25-30 feet tall and wide with age.
Growing Requirements:
Well-drained soils, sun.
Features:
The specific epithet champaca is derived from the Sanskrit word campaka.
Many nurseries continue to list both trees under the genus Michelia, which was incorporated into Magnolia in 2004. The Magnoliaceae, or magnolia family, now consists of only two genera, Magnolia and Liriodendron. Michelia were formerly distinguished due to their evergreen leaves and production of flowers along the leaf axils instead of only at the branch tips.
Where at Lotusland:
Magnolia × alba can be found in between the Japanese Garden and Arboretum at Lotusland, north of the Wisteria Pavilion. Another closely related and banana-scented species, Magnolia figo, also formerly in the genus Michelia, grows nearby.
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Ginkgo biloba
ginkgo, maidenhair tree
Highlight Month:
December
Nativity:
Ginkgo biloba is the only surviving member of an ancient lineage of ginkgo-like plants that arose during the early Permian period, approximately 280 million years ago (mya), and consisted of at least 16 genera. Members of the extant genus Ginkgo appeared in the early Jurassic (~ 180 mya) and had a circumpolar distribution in the Northern Hemisphere before the last species, Ginkgo biloba, retreated to its final habitat in what is now China. Despite being widely cultivated, G. biloba is currently designated as Endangered by the IUCN, with only two wild populations recently identified in Guizhou and Zhejiang provinces. The oldest recorded living ginkgo is estimated to be 3,500 years old.
Growth Habit:
Ginkgo are gymnosperms (along with conifers, cycads, and gnetophyes), a group of perennial, seed-producing plants. Unlike angiosperms, or flowering plants, gymnosperms do not produce flowers and instead develop “naked” seeds lacking a protective ovary. Ginkgo are dioecious, with separate male and female plants. Most selections in cultivation are male because female plants drop seeds covered in a malodorous fleshy sarcotesta reminiscent of rancid butter or vomit. Ginkgo are known for dropping their leaves over a short period of time, sometimes in a single day, resulting in a dramatic yellow carpet of leaves underneath the canopy. Trees are slow growing but can reach 50-80 feet tall and become pyramidal in shape with age.
Growing Requirements:
Ginkgo require consistent moisture and can grow in full sun to partial shade. They are remarkably unaffected by urban smog and have been widely planted in Asia as street and park trees. Ginkgo biloba is an incredibly tolerant species, able to withstand most environmental stresses and is affected by few pests and diseases.
Features:
The genus name comes from ginkyo, the Japanese phonetic pronunciation of the Chinese characters for “silver apricot.” The specific epithet, biloba, refers to the two-lobed shape of the leaves and, because they resemble maidenhair fern (Adiantum) leaflets, the common name is maidenhair tree.
Ginkgo biloba is the only surviving species in its division Ginkgophyta. Fossil evidence suggests Ginkgo has remained generally unchanged for the last 270 million years and was once native to North America and throughout the world. Ginkgo biloba is widely grown in China and Japan for its medicinal, food and timber value. Female trees produce an edible seed covered in a nauseatingly smelly fleshy structure. Once cleaned, these seeds are roasted or included in bird’s-nest soup. Standardized extracts from the leaves are used to treat difficulties of concentration and memory, lack of energy, decrease physical performance, anxiety, dizziness, tinnitus and headache.
Where at Lotusland:
Lotusland’s Japanese Garden is home to one female ginkgo tree, which drops its seed in late November to early December. The remainder in Lotusland’s living collection are male, including three specimens of the cultivar ‘Autumn Gold’, a 1957 selection chosen for golden yellow fall color. Another specimen has been pruned and trained in the niwaki style.
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Begonia peltata
lily-pad begonia, fuzzy leaf begonia
Highlight Month:
October
Nativity:
Southern Mexico to Honduras
Growth Habit:
B. peltata has almost-circular felted leaves coated in a layer of white fuzz. The specific epithet refers to the peltate leaves with the petiole, or leaf stalk, attached to a point on the underside of the leaf, like a waterlily or lotus.
Growing Requirements:
This begonia thrives in full sun to dappled shade, can handle semi-dry conditions, and is hardy to USDA Zone 9a. It reaches 2-4 feet tall and wide, becoming shrub-like with age.
Features:
Like all begonias, B. peltata is monecious and produces male and female flowers on separate structures of the same plant. Superficially, the flowers appear identical, both with white petals and yellow reproductive parts. This is a type of pollination mimicry called pseudoanthery. In the case of begonias, nectarless female flowers imitate pollen-filled yellow stamens of the male flowers to attract pollinators for fertilization. Female flowers can be distinguished by the presence of a three-angled ovary behind the petals, and a cluster of spiraled yellow stigmas.
Where at Lotusland:
Begonia peltata can be found in the Fern Garden at Lotusland, near the entrance on the Main Drive across from the Insectary Garden.
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Alpinia zerumbet ‘Variegata’
variegated shell ginger
Highlight Month:
September
Nativity:
Eastern Asia
Growth Habit:
Variegated shell ginger makes a great tropical addition to the garden with bold yellow and green striated leaves. It thrives in moist soils in full to partial sun and reaches 4-8 feet tall in Santa Barbara.
Growing Requirements:
This ginger is hardy to USDA Zone 8 but is commonly planted as an annual in colder climates due to its ornamental foliage. Clumps spread slowly via underground rhizomes to around four feet in diameter.
Flowers are produced on the second-year growth and resemble small light pink shells when in bud. When fully open, a tubular ruffled yellow petal emerges with a red throat. Following flowering, the plant will produce round, fleshy, vermillion fruits with longitudinal ribs.
Features:
Alpinia zerumbet is a member of the Zingiberaceae or ginger family, which includes ornamental and edible gingers, turmeric, and cardamom. The genus name honors 17th century Italian botanist Prospero Alpini. Alpinia zerumbet is native to eastern Asia where it is used for culinary and medicinal purposes. The fragrant flowers, leaves, and rhizomes impart flavors and scent to other cooking ingredients. In Okinawa, Japan, the leaves are utilized to wrap muchi or onimochi, a pounded and flavored steamed rice, typically eaten in the cold season. In China, the dried fruits are an ingredient in Sichuan hot pot soups, and the leaves are one of many regional plant species used to bundle zongzi, stuffed rice dumplings.
Where at Lotusland:
Water Garden bogs and in the Lower Bromeliad Garden near the Rooster Grotto
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Trevesia palmata
snowflake aralia, snowflake tree
Highlight Month:
August
Nativity:
Trevesia palmata belongs to the ginseng family, or Araliaceae, and has a large native range from Nepal to China and south to Thailand and Vietnam.
Growth Habit:
Individual leaves can reach up to two feet wide and are circular in outline. As the plant matures, successive leaves change their morphology from simple to palmate and, in some selections, the leaves display attractive dissected sinuses. The common name references this highly variable and cut-leaf foliage in the pattern of a snowflake. The cultivar ‘Micholitzii’ is one of these horticultural selections chosen for dramatic leaf shape and fuzzy white newly emerging foliage. Trevesia palmata grows in evergreen forest understory typically as a solitary trunk with few side branches, reaching a maximum height of 15-20 feet tall. The stems and petioles have scattered short prickles.
Growing Requirements:
T. palmata prefers light shade to part sun and is hardy to USDA Zone 9.
Features:
Like many other species in the Araliaceae, Trevesia palmata produces its reproductive structures on an umbel. Short flower stalks gathered in a cluster resemble spokes on an umbrella. Flowers on the ends of the stalks emerge yellow in the spring and mature into half-inch round fruits. The young flower buds are edible. The genus Trevesia contains eight species, all native to Asia. Other well-known genera in this family include Aralia, Cussonia, Fatsia, Hedera, Pseudopanax, Heptapleurum, Schefflera, and Tetrapanax.
Where at Lotusland:
Tropical Garden/Cycad Garden interface
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Acanthostachys strobilacea
pinecone bromeliad
Highlight Month:
July
Nativity:
This odd genus of bromeliads contains only three species, all endemic to South America. In its native habitat, it grows epiphytically or on rocks from eastern Brazil to Paraguay and northeastern Argentina.
Growth Habit:
It is a low maintenance, drought tolerant plant that spreads via short basal rhizomes.
Growing Requirements:
The long narrow foliage is covered in tiny specialized white scales called trichomes and initially grows upright and then arches and becomes pendulous, making it an excellent subject in a hanging basket or tall pot.
Features:
A. strobilacea blooms in the summer with small, dense inflorescences reminiscent of tiny pinecones. The flowers have yellow petals and are set inside showy bright orange and red pointy bracts. The genus name is derived from the Greek, acanthos (thorny or spiny), and stachys (a flower spike). The specific epithet, strobilacea, also refers to the cone-like appearance of the persistent inflorescences.
Lotusland is home to one other species in this genus, Acanthostachys pitcairnioides, which exhibits a much different growth habit with upright, bright orange leaves lined with dark brown teeth. Its lavender flowers emerge at the base of each rosette and develop into attractive ovoid white fruits.
Where at Lotusland:
Acanthostachys strobilacea can be found in the Lower Bromeliad Garden at Lotusland where it happily grows in a terra cotta strawberry pot.
