Terracotta
mestoklema arboriforme
mestoklema arboriforme
escription: Mestoklema arboriformeSN|875]]SN|875]] is a small shrubby "Mesemb" (ice plant relative) 25-60 cm tall that develops a miniature tree like habit with a gnarled tuberous rootstock .
Rootstock (Caudex): Tuberous, branched with smooth red bark. In habitat the fat rootstock grows buried in the ground, but in cultivation, once the tuberous roots develop, the plant is lifted above soil level and replanted with roots exposed making a very showy bonsai-like specimen.
Stem: Intricately branched. The old stems appear to vary in colour, some turning more orange in colour than blackish-brown.
Leaves: 5-15 mm long, 1,1-1.5 mm wide.
Inflorescences: 3-6-branched cymes, about 30-60 mm in diameter. Pedicel 1-5 mm long.
Flowers: Small 7-10 mm in diameter, whitish to yellow-orange. Petals 20 to 25, 4-5 mm long.
Blooming season: Flowers appear in spring, plants start flowering at an early age often when only 6 month old.
Fruits: About 3 mm in diameter, stalks approx. 10 mm long.
Seeds: 0,7 x 0,5 mm.
Remarks: There are contrasting opinions on whether the plants commonly found in culture are Mestoklema tuberosa or Mestoklema arboriformeSN|875]]SN|875]]. The one and the other have dull white, yellow or orange flowers and the description of these two taxa in Jacobsen is obscure enough that it could be either.