Some flowers are not meant to be sniffed.
Trust me on that one.
I have tested it. Few times.
And I have enough!
This is one of my Stinkers plants as I like to call them. It is some type of Huernia, bur the tag I was using got completely bleached by the sun and I don't know it's full name.
It is a lovely plant and I have quite a few of those (different, but all Stinkers). I like their thick stems and most of the time very compact look. And after you get the idea how to take care of them - they are quite easy too.
This one I grew from a single cutting and now it is the very first time that it bloomed for me.
I was not sure what flower it is gonna have, so I am waiting impatiently as soon as I saw the buds forming.
Yep, it is cute! Very small, maybe 1,5 cm across, but the pattern and all those nipples and ripples gives it a wild look though. Very unusual!
Now why do I call them Stinkers you may ask?
Well because all those flowers stink like rotten meat. And I am not exaggerating! Rotten, decomposing flesh attracts flies. This is the trick of those little beauties - to attract flies to pollinate the flowers. So the closest it gets to smell like decomposing animal the better. And that is exactly how they smell stink.
I keep mine outside on the balcony, so I don't feel it, but I can't imagine few of those blooming in a closed space.
Few more tiny buds.
This succulent is native to South Africa and can handle high temperatures if it is not left on a direct burning sun. Regular watering and it will be a happy camper. In nature it likes to grow between the rocks, in the cracks or under the bushes, so it does not get direct sun all day long.
In winter in the other hand it needs to be kept almost completely dry. I learned that the hard way - I had few more with unusual flowers and I left them on the rain in winter. I had nothing to look at in spring.
The stems are not very long and on this particular one they are covered in that cool, burgundy spots. Very attractive look!
All the little nipples are rather soft and don't do any harm.
Here you can see a little accident that happened to mine. The black center is the original stem cutting I had. I don't remember now what happened to it if it was sunburn or bugs,but the top part completely died off. Luckily the roots and bottom of the stem was ok and it grew two side branches that I could easily snap off and plant as separate plants.
At this time of the year they should root very easily just by placing them on top of a soil.
Easy peasy stinkers :)
Shot with Nikon D5500 + Sigma 105mm lens
All photos and text are my own.
