Epiphyllum oxypetalum
 

For several years I have wanted one of these "Queen of the Night" Cactus (Epiphyllum oxypetalum). I have another epiphytic cactus, but it has microscopic non-descript flowers. I have also seen cuttings of Epiphyllum oxypetalum online, but they are always a few cuttings, and not a great value for the money. Anyway, this morning I walked into Lowes and saw a HUGE Epiphyllum oxypetalum in a hanging basket for 15 bucks. It was well on its way, and probably will be blooming in a few years. Wow!

Define "huge".........mine are pushing 4' tall, and are really still just babies, although they are blooming size.

The longest leaves are about 9 to 10 inches long. It has about 45 leaves (leads). Obviously, they will grow longer and drape over the bucket. I have seen pictures online and see them in bloom when the leaves are in the 3-4 foot or so long and longer-range (so yeah, I know they get rather long). My other epiphytic cactus has leaves only about 2 feet long and I started it about 3 years ago from tiny little cuttings. It will always be just a green leafy plant because the flowers are miniscule, but that is okay.

I know there are tons of cultivars and colors, but I have really been searching for this one, and am gob-smacked that I just found a big one. It's a NOID, and I am guessing it will have white flowers. (I will love them anyway!)

I think other than orchids, and iris, my favorite plants are epiphytic cactus.

Good find! Epiphyllum oxypetalum has nocturnal white flowers.

A friend had a 2-story sunroom attached to his house. He had one of these in a pot on the ground floor, climbing all the way to the top. They can be grown as hanging baskets, but they also look good trained upright.

By the way, epiphytic cacti don't have leaves. The flat structures are stems. The ones with big flowers are sold as Epi hybrids or Epiphyllums, though they are hybrids among many related genera.

Home | Epiphyllum Society of America

Garden Jewels Nursery – San Diego Epiphyllums

Matt's Landscape is a source for cuttings. His site goes over his bandwidth all the time, so you can't reach the site at the end of the month.

awesome-- yeah, I did realize that cacti have a kind of combined stem/leaf. What to call them eludes me. I will also check the Matt site. Thanks!

Where's the pic's?