Generally starting in spring, it is still flowering at Dunedin Botanic Garden well into autumn. Alsobia has dainty white-frilled flowers that look as if they have been somewhat shredded, poking out from among the foliage.
Native to Mexico and Costa Rica, it is best grown as an indoor plant or house plant in Dunedin, but it will tolerate temperatures as low as 4degC. It is a perennial with reddish stems and soft, downy, deep-green succulent leaves, often with reddish veins which are very prominent on the back of the leaf.
It doesn't like water sitting on the leaves, so it is best to water early in the day or from beneath, as you would with African violets, to which Alsobia is closely related.
Alsobia dianthiflora looks great with its foliage trailing over the side of a pot, so is ideally suited to hanging baskets.
Alsobia dianthifolia likes bright light, but not full sun from the hottest part of the day. It is an easy-care plant that likes a free-draining soil that is able to dry out a little between waterings, and can even handle some times of drought.
See it in the winter garden glasshouse in a hanging basket above the fish pond.
Garden Life is produced by Dunedin Botanic Garden. For further information, contact Stephen Bishop.
