Meanwhile back in the Greenhouse

Every year I tell myself that I need to toughen up and start admiring plants from a distance. Then spring comes and the first one or two greenhouses I visit I'm good, but by the third or fourth I walk out with my hands full with some orchid or other blooming plant that is new to my collection.  Last spring it was the Epiphyllum virus that hit.  It just so happened that it was the second year that my own greenhouse had been up and running and all the plants were blooming their best year ever, including my Night Blooming Cereus, Epiphylum oxypetallum.  I was in Southern Oregon with my father on our "annual father and son fishing trip" and we happened by this nursery and decided to stop in.  I put on my tough face, the one that says looking not buying and went in.  Ten minutes later I returned to the car with this absolutely gorgeous Epyphyllum "Padre" which of course translated means "Father".  How apropos... "Padre .....father and son fishing trip".  It sounded like a good reason to me, but when I brought it home MeMa just shook her head.

Epicactus 'Padre' Epiphylum

It is the most brilliant pink and unlike the night bloomer which blooms and wilts in one evening, this one stays in bloom for about four or five days.  The flower is about six or seven inches in circumference and the plant itself is quite large.  Later that summer we were attending the annual Laurelhurst Neighborhood Garage Sale which is a fund raiser to maintain one of Portland's oldest and historic landmarks.  While MeMa browsed for things we probably didn't need I found a comfortable place to sit and rest.  Anyway as I sat and looked around the landscape I noticed a miniature Epiphyllum that someone planted as an annual, and a couple of pieces just happened to break off and jumped into my shirt pocket.  At the time I will just call it the mystery Epiphylum until it is mature enough to bloom and I can identify it.  I think this is a great genus of plant and I am enjoying the four that I have.

Epicactus 'Deutsche Kaiserin'

My Night Bloomer
 Epiphylum oxypetalum

The mystery epiphylum, growing well and waiting to be identified.