marian's Blog

Well I have found it! my Strongylodon Macrobotrys (Jade Vine) and not one but 800 plants. LOL. Well I am actually only getting two of those 800 available, lovely, exotic plants after a search for them for what I think is about 15 yrs now more or less, I don’t care to count any longer, I’ve found it whoo hoo, that’s all that counts. No I have not had a few glasses of fermented grape juice just heady from my find. I never give up when I want to find a plant I am looking for. I was on the internet the other day looking for something entirely different to plants and found this nursery up in the Limpopo Province. I was so excited when I saw their picture of a Jade vine that I took the tel number and phoned it. Needless to say I did not expect them to have one, let alone 800 plants knee high in height. Well the person on the other end was so nonplussed when I said I am enquiring as to whether or not you have any jade vines. “Yes” she said so low key “we do”. I was speechless for a minute or two or three. (I have a contact in Jhb who was willing to bring any plant down for me providing I could get it to Jhb. Bad news they do not supply to Jhb). I told her not to worry that after 15yrs I could wait a while and of course work out my problem. I left my telephone number and a few days later got this phonecall from the nursery manager to say that his sister who lives in a suburb 20 mins away from us was visiting him this week and is going back with an empty van, and would be only too glad to bring me my plants. I am so happy. We had a bit of a chat over the plant. He had one in his garden till last season I think he said,  it started to die back and he discovered it had rotted at the base, it had recently given him *46* blooms. He was so upset he just pulled the whole arbour out. He said it was a very old jade vine. Arrrg ! I would have been so upset.  If you haven’t  seen the flowers on this plant? Do yourself a favour and look it up on the web. Apparently the colour of this flower is almost unique to the plant kingdom. I hope I am successful in growing this plant, at least I will be able to say I tried. :-)