San Marcos Growers LogoSan Marcos Growers
New User
Wholesale Login
Enter Password
Home Products Purchase Gardens About Us Resources Contact Us
Nursery Closure
Search Utilities
Plant Database
Search Plant Name
Detail Search Avanced Search Go Button
Search by size, origins,
details, cultural needs
Website Search Search Website GO button
Search for any word
Site Map
Retail Locator
Plant Listings

PLANT TYPE
PLANT GEOGRAPHY
PLANT INDEX
ALL PLANT LIST
PLANT IMAGE INDEX
PLANT INTROS
SPECIALTY CROPS
NEW  2024 PLANTS

PRIME LIST
  for JULY


Natives at San Marcos Growers
Succulents at San Marcos Growers
 Weather Station

 
Products > Epiphyllum John Bleck Hybrids
 
Epiphyllum John Bleck Hybrids - Bleck's Epi Hybrids
   

 
Habit and Cultural Information
Category: Succulent
Family: Cactaceae (Cactus)
Origin: Central America (North America)
Evergreen: Yes
Flower Color: Mixed
Bloomtime: Spring/Summer
Synonyms: [Epi hybrid]
Parentage: (E. Giant Empress (Dentsche Kaiserin) x Fluid Gold)
Height: 1-2 feet
Width: 2-4 feet
Exposure: Shade
Irrigation (H2O Info): Medium Water Needs
Winter Hardiness: 30-32° F
Epiphyllum "Bleck Hybrids" (Bleck's Hybrid Orchid Cactus) – Epiphytic cacti that form a clumps of foliage to 3 to 4 feet across with 2 to 3 foot long broad flat green thorn less stems with lobed edges that act and look a lot like leaves. These leaves radiate outward and in the spring bear flowers in a range of colors from very dark salmon pink through pale yellow and cream – these are day blooming varieties that grow best in bright shade planted in a basket or pot in a well-drained rich soil mix. These plants are pretty tough but perform best when watered weekly and fertilized occasionally in spring and summer months. These plants are all seedlings that resulted in the cross down in 2016 by noted aloe breeder John Bleck between the beautiful starry Epiphyllum x 'Fluid Gold', which itself really is a bigeneric hybrid (sometimes called an Epicactus) that was created by Fred Boutin and the showy Epiphyllum 'Giant Empress', also known as Dentsche Kaiserin, which translates as "German Impress (some maintain these are distinct plants). Epiphyllum 'Giant Empress' has showy light pink flowers that are almost tubular at their base, which is called funnelform. Mr. Bleck's intention in breeding these two plants was to introduce the fragrance of 'Fluid Gold', which has a fragrant Dysocactus in its parentage, into darker colored hybrids. While the range of colors achieved was incredible, with some a very dark salmon color, as yet only the yellow flowering plants have an attractive fragrance. Though this plant is really is a complex hybrid made up from other genera, the name usually associated with them is Epiphyllum, which is a valid name for some epiphytic cactus. The name for the genus Epiphyllum comes from the Greek words 'epi' meaning "top" and 'phylon' meaning leaf in reference to the flowers arising from the leaf-like flattened stems. 

This information about Epiphyllum John Bleck Hybrids displayed is based on research conducted in our horticultural library and from reliable online resources. We also will relate observations made about it as it grows in our nursery gardens and other gardens we have visited, as well how the crops have performed in containers in our nursery field. We will also incorporate comments that we receive from others and we welcome hearing from anyone with additional information, particularly if they can share any cultural information that would aid others in growing it.