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  1. #1
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    Default Queen of the night

    This ugly looking succulent has the most amazing flowers with incredible perfume..

    6BE8FA90-CA84-4FC5-8A39-5C98B1C970CF.jpg

    They usually only flower once a year, at night, and the flower lasts only that night.

    This year it has three flowers. This one will bloom tonight and be hanging like a limp rag in the morning.
    I’ll put up some pictures of it in full bloom tomorrow.

    5E2A4DE6-3F23-4173-9B2E-F3E11C8E6E56.jpg

    These two will probably bloom tomorrow night.

    7559E93E-536E-4F13-A41F-C5DFF1A54973.jpg

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  3. #2
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    Feb 2006
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    Perth
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    Default

    We have 3 of these plants obtained from the centenarian (Bert) neighbour who had a number of them growing all over his (homemade) outdoor brick with lime mortar dunny. The dunny was always in danger of collapse because he used to pile rubbish up against the rear wall and burn it in a once a year conflagration. The mortar was gradually washed away by the rain and one night the whole thing collapsed. We helped his 70 something year old son with the clean up and asked Bert if we could rescue the plants and he said help yourself.

    They flowered about 2 weeks ago during heat wave and we missed the show (AGAIN!)

  4. #3
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  5. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2005
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    Campbelltown NSW
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    Default

    They certainly are showy flower but a very spiked plant. I made a time lapse 30 second clip of one of ours opening and closing several years ago.

  6. #5
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    Default

    Great video. Thanks.
    Mine has no spikes at all. Large, flat leaves and the flower comes from where you would expect a spike to be on the leaf.

    96568670-2CEA-46E7-BC53-49646DED3AA8.jpg 7BC004ED-00CF-41E7-93C3-461242584AC7.jpg

    I’ll have to do some research and get the scientific name.

    On research apple8, it would appear you have the true Queen of the Night (Selenicereus grandiflorus), and I have the pretender to the throne (Epiphyllum oxypetalum) - also called Queen of the Night. Yours is not commonly cultivated but mine is.

    Good article here.
    Selenicereus grandiflorus - Wikipedia
    Last edited by Lappa; 10th January 2021 at 07:48 AM. Reason: Further research

  7. #6
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    Default

    All spent after a hard night blooming. Probably never got visited by the moth that it puts this display on for. Overseas travellers are not allowed in

    D0BF0A2D-F058-41D2-9969-ABAB8FDF626C.jpg

    Looking forward to next year, if I remember to check around 9pm Like BobL J’ve missed a few years of flowering.

  8. #7
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    Default

    The “Queen” is good to her subjects.
    Looks like I’ll have the pleasure of viewing one of her three flowers over three nights.

    Flower No. 2

    44BE341A-BDD6-45D5-ACCD-94C852C0D691.jpg

  9. #8
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    Millmerran,QLD
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    Lappa

    We have a cactus that flowers prolifically, but like your Queen of the Night, the flower opens on dusk and is a spent force by morning. It may be a common trait. It is a huge flower but still not as spectacular as your plant.

    Regards
    Paul
    Bushmiller;

    "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"

  10. #9
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  11. #10
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    Nov 2004
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    Millmerran,QLD
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    Default

    Sorry for the delay in providing pix: I had to find them and still I did not find those I was really looking for.

    The bigger cactus is the one in question:

    P1040305.jpg

    The buds

    cactus buds.JPG

    The flowers at night time. They are about 100mm long excluding the stem.

    Cactus flower and bud.JPG Cactus flowers and buds 2.jpg

    These pix were taken as night approached.

    Cactus flower 001.jpg Cactus flower 002.jpg

    In the course of a year this cactus will produce upwards of a hundred flowers. Some years it has produced more than twice that amount. They all last about twelve hours.

    This is another cactus with large flowers but is less prolific, although the flowers last a good two days instead.

    Cactus barrow.JPG

    Regards
    Paul
    Bushmiller;

    "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"

  12. #11
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    Default

    Thanks for the pictures Paul.
    It’s amazing that such ordinary looking plants can produce flowers as beautiful as they do.

    Your’s must look absolutely spectacular when in full bloom, especially with the size of the flowers.

  13. #12
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    Nov 2004
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    Millmerran,QLD
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    Lappa

    Just occasionally the cactus has up to a fifty plus buds at one time, but no more than about eight will be open at the same time. I often miss the flowering as I see they are about to open and then forget to look!

    Regards
    Paul
    Bushmiller;

    "Power tends to corrupt. Absolute power corrupts, absolutely!"

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