Identification: Purple fuzzy stemmed mystery plant

Discussion in 'Indoor and Greenhouse Plants' started by dreadawn, Aug 4, 2004.

  1. dreadawn

    dreadawn Member

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    Location:
    Chicago, IL
    So far I've had no luck, I'm hoping someone here can help to identify this unusual plant.
    I couldnt help but resist buying it at a local home store even though it just had a generic
    tropical plant tag. I've learned by experience that it likes to be well watered, or it will wilt horribly,
    to my surprise and delight it bounced right back after a good watering.
    I've had it for about 2 months and it seems to like east window that i've placed it in.
    The photos below will probably do a far better job describing it than I could.

    Any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks in advance...
     

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  2. jimmyq

    jimmyq Well-Known Member 10 Years

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    Metro Vancouver, BC, Canada.
  3. dreadawn

    dreadawn Member

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    Thanks Jimmy...

    I thought it could be a relative of Gynura.
    Its leaf shape is more curved rather than sharp and the leaves are compound
    (i think thats the right term) into 5 leaflets. The purple color is also more subtle.
    I started looking for other species and it looks like there are 25!
    I managed to find pics of a few but they all looked pretty similar.
     
  4. dreadawn

    dreadawn Member

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    better pics?

    it was a cloudy yesterday...hopefully these new pics will help!
     

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  5. namawa

    namawa Active Member

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    I believe you have a Mikania, likely M. dentata.

    These have recently been more widely available through Exotic Angel plants. EA calls them 'Purple Pleasure'.

    http://www.exoticangel.com/Varieties/ShowProductDetails.aspx?productid=229
    (They also call it Micania, with a 'c' instead of a 'k', and 'ternata', though personally I believe yours is M. dentata.)

    They're a member of the Asteraceae family. More often than not, flowers of plants from this family are yellow, and they're easily described as 'daisy-like'...is that what your plant's blooms looked like?

    It's really hard to find information on this plant.

    What I'd like to know, is how did you get yours to grow so large and lush? (LOL!)

    I've tried this plant twice, and failed:(
    I've read in older 'Houseplant' books that those who grow it in a greenhouse consider it a 'pest' - that it roots everywhere they don't want it to - wish mine would have done so! (Ü)

    I just signed up today - these are *GREAT* forums!
     
  6. wild-rose-43

    wild-rose-43 Active Member

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    That's my plant!!! I've had one of those for years but never knew what it was. When I first got it the tag had no scientific name but it said "Purple Haze". I have searched the internet far and wide for Purple Haze and never found any information. I've started, several times, to post a picture on here and never got around to it. Wow!! Now I know. Thanks!!
     
  7. Bluewing

    Bluewing Well-Known Member

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    Great plant dreadawn, nice plant stand too:)
     
    Last edited: Jul 3, 2008
  8. wild-rose-43

    wild-rose-43 Active Member

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    Sorry for the confusion Bluewing. The plant pictured belongs to dreadawn. I was just trying to say that I have one like it and have been trying to find the name of it for about 5 years. Mine is actually quite a bit smaller than that because I almost lost it and had to start over from cuttings.
     
  9. namawa

    namawa Active Member

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    Hi wild-rose-43!
    I'm so glad I could help - I came here yesterday via Google, and didn't notice until *after* I'd joined and posted that the thread was rather 'old'! (Ü)
    So glad that resurrecting it helped you out, too!

    Seems that this was one of those older plants that is re-gaining popularity.
    How long have you had yours? What conditions do you find it prefers?
     
  10. Bluewing

    Bluewing Well-Known Member

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    wild-rose,
    Thanks for pointing my error out. Sometimes the brain just stops functioning!
     
  11. wild-rose-43

    wild-rose-43 Active Member

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    No problem on the error Bluewing, it happens to all of us now and again. :)

    Thanks and welcome namawa! I didn't even look at the date on the thread. I'm glad you dug it up!!

    I've had mine for about 5-6 years. I had it in a north facing window when we lived in Cordova, Alaska and it did beautifully. When we moved to Juneau, Alaska it was in a south window and it started to look very sickly. I babied it along and when we moved here, I took cuttings and tossed what was left of the plant. It's now doing great...in a north facing window again. Seems they prefer medium light like the site you posted suggests. Now that I know, I'll be sure to keep it where it is! I water it pretty plentifully. I'm going to re-pot it here in a few weeks into a bigger pot to see if I can get it to look like the one pictured!
     

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