Pachypodiums: Thick-footed succulents

(Succulentophile is giving way this week to Peter A. Bangayan. Peter has a degree in BS Physics from La Salle and an MBA from Ateneo. His interest in succulents started around 15 years ago. He’s a member of the Cactus and Succulent Society and became its president from 1998 to 2000. Aside from collecting succulents, mostly African succulents, Peter is into photography especially black and white photography.)



One of the more interesting succulent plant families, of which many of its species can be used as bonsai subjects, is the pachypodium. Pachypodium literally means thick foot, which is a very apt description of the plants in this genus. Pachypodiums are a very close relative of the Adenium obesum, the plant we commonly call "Bangkok calachuchi" which is widely grown almost everywhere here in the Philippines. We see them in gardens both public and private with their red funnel-shaped flowers.

Most pachypodiums originally come from the island of Madagascar with a few species coming from the southern part of Africa. In general, they have thick trunks, which can be quite spiny with leaves growing on the tip of their branches. Their leaves can be long and thin or oblong in shape depending on the species, some species grow to tree proportions several meters tall as in Pachypodium geayi or Pachypodium rutenbergianum while some such as Pachypodium brevicaule grow to only a few inches tall.

Pachypodiums in general are easy to grow in our hot tropical climate, with the exception of the southern African species and the rare Pachypodium brevicaule, they are one of the easiest succulents to grow here in the Philippines. Pachypodium lamerei is grown commercially in many nurseries around the world and has become a rather common sight, the plant with its thick spiny stem and whorls of long shiny leaves on the top of its stem has earned the common name of "Madagascan Palm" for resembling a palm tree.

Fast growing Pachypodiums such as Pachypodium lamerei, P. rutenbergianum, P. saudersii, and P. geayi grow well in rich well-drained soil of compost, sharp sand and garden loam. Slower growing plants such as Pachypodium namaquanum, P. densiflorum, P. baronii, P. rosulatum, etc. require less compost and more sharp sand. Pachypodiums can take liberal watering especially the faster growing plants with the exception of Pachypodium brevicaule and P. namaquanum, both of which are very prone to rotting when given too much water during their resting period. Pachypodiums must be fed with a mild fertilizer regularly during their growing period, which is usually during hot summer months. During colder months such as in November to February, the growth of most pachypodiums usually slow down or comes to a halt. During this resting period the more sensitive species must be watered sparingly. Given a bright sunny position with enough water and feeding, Pachypodiums are very hardy plants and will seldom be attacked by insects, occasional problems with scale insects occur when the plants are grown in less suitable conditions such as growing them in the shade or indoors. One method of dealing with scales without resorting to insecticides is to use a cotton ball dipped with alcohol and wiping the scales off the plant’s leaves and giving the plants more suitable conditions such as a brighter growing environment. However, it must be kept in mind that a plant grown in shade should be slowly acclimatized (lest your plant suffer from unsightly burn marks) to growing in full sunlight by gradually transferring the plant to a location of less sunlight to a brighter spot three or four times in a span of about two weeks. As with all succulent plants, protection from too much moisture during the wet season is recommended especially with the more sensitive species.

Pachypodiums are usually propagated from seed because propagating them from cuttings can be difficult and tricky as the plants have very thick succulent stems, which are prone to bacterial rot when cut. There are many species of pachypodiums that are suitable for pot culture and here are some of them:

Pachypodium lamerei or "Madagascan Palm" as it is called is the most widely grown of all pachypodiums. These plants are fast growing and can grow up to a few meters tall. P. lamerei has glossy green leaves which grow around the top portion of the stems. It has white floppy flowers that resemble those of the plumeria’s or calachuchi as we commonly call them. The plants usually flower when they are about five or six feet tall. Monstrose and crested forms of this pachypodium are rare collectors’ items.

Another fast growing plant, which resembles P. lamerei in form is Pachypodium geayi. This plant has thin velvety purplish leaves, and can grow up to several meters tall. P. geayi has a fatter and spinier trunk than P. lamerei and a more velvety appearance especially on its growing point, the flowers of this plant are white and are relatively small being borne on branched flowering stems.

Pachypodium rosulatum and Pachypodium densiflorum are hard to tell apart unless they are in flower. The flowers of P. rosulatum are bell-shaped and have a hollow tube with their another cones inside the tube while those of densiflorum have a very shallow cone with the anthers exposed. Both species have bottle-shaped trunks and numerous thin branches and make good pot plants.

The two southern African species Pachypodium bispinosum and P. succulentum usually grow in the wild with their trunks buried deep in the soil. Their main stems resemble more of a tuberous root with only their long thin branches exposed above the soil. When growing these plants, the trunks are usually exposed for aesthetic and practical reasons. Exposing the thick trunks above the soil level prevents rotting. These plants have very small white flowers with reddish centers.

Pachypodium decaryi looks more like an Adenium than a Pachypodium because of its spineless flask shaped stems and glossy green leaves. This species used to be one of the rarest species endemic only to a small area in the island of Madagascar. This plant has large floppy white flowers and is considered a collectors’ item.

All in all pachypodiums are a very interesting genus to grow in our climate because most of the species adapt readily to our hot tropical weather and a number of them make excellent bonsai subjects. P. lamerei and P. geayi are usually available for sale especially during plant shows. Growing these interesting plants can be very rewarding as they resemble miniature growing sculptures and never fails to attract the attention of a plant lover.

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