Caralluma

Family. Asclepiadaceae.

Origin. North Africa, Mediterranean islands, Spain.

Description. The genus "Caralluma" includes a large number of succulent plants with 4-6-sided olive-green erect or drooping stems up to 4 cm in diameter, which have large thorns topped with prickles. Flowers with 5 pointed, fleshy, velvety petals, star-shaped, usually collected in apical inflorescences, sometimes solitary, have a very varied color - green, pink, maroon, yellow, red, with various marks and stripes and a very unpleasant odor. The diameter of the flowers varies greatly depending on the species and ranges from 1 to 8 cm.

Height. About 20 cm.

Temperature conditions

These plants do not like the cold, so year-round maintenance at room temperature is suitable. Carallums can withstand brief temperature drops of up to 5°C if kept dry. Winter maintenance at a temperature of 10 - 15° C. 

Lighting

Shade the succulent during hot daytime hours in spring and summer. Provide the most illuminated location in autumn and winter.

Substrate

The root system is compact, with a large number of small roots, so loose soil is used for growing, for example, ready-made mixtures for cacti and succulents with the addition of coarse river sand, perlite or pumice to improve drainage.

Feeding

Caralluma is fed with fertilizers for cacti and succulents with a high potassium content and low in nitrogen, 2 times a month in half the concentration.

Purpose

A very unusual, spectacular, compact plant.

Flowering time

End of summer - autumn. 

Air humidity

No need to spray. In winter, the air should remain dry. It is advisable to ensure good air movement around the carallum, while avoiding cold drafts. 

Soil moisture

Water moderately but deeply during the growing season, allowing the soil to dry out before the next watering. Reduce watering in winter so that the earthen ball does not dry out. 

Transplant

Adult specimens are replanted every 2 years, in the spring, it is advisable to use clay pots, the walls of which allow air and water to pass through and allow the soil to dry out faster.

Reproduction

Propagated by stem cuttings in spring and summer. Pre-dry the cut site for 1 - 2 days. Sowing seeds in spring in a damp mixture of peat and sand. Seeds germinate quickly. Grafting.

Pests and diseases

Plants are very sensitive to stem and root rot, which appear as a result of waterlogging, especially in the autumn-winter period. Sometimes mealybugs or scale insects appear. 

Varieties:

Caralluma fimbriata

Small evergreen succulents up to 20 cm high with thick, tetrahedral stems branching at the base, reminiscent of a cactus. Small, rudimentary leaves sometimes appear on young plants, but they fall off with age. During the flowering period, few-flowered inflorescences appear at the tops of the shoots, which bear small flowers up to 2 cm in diameter.