Most houseplant books mention that Gynura aurantiaca has yellow-orange flowers with an unpleasant smell, and advise you to pinch them off. I've smelled them before a time or two and didn't think they were really all that bad. I mean, it's not a nice smell, but it seemed to me like it could be lived with. .jpg)
Then all the Gynuras at work, like three flats of them (seven pots to a flat, three plants to a pot), all bloomed at once, and I understand a little better now. Sort of a body odor / vomit / feet / rancid butter kind of smell happening. Not good in large doses. So now the flowers get pinched off.
Monday, June 30, 2008
Random plant event: Gynura aurantiaca flowers
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6 comments:
For once, a garden that's nicer to visit in the blogosphere than in person. The colors are gorgeous. Thanks for sparing me from the smell.
These can't possibly smell worse than the row of bradford pears on my campus. Or rather rows. All of which are planted outside of dining halls.
Now the flowers get pinched off--sounds like a plan there, a subjunctive-free, true to fact, gonna-happen type plan.
--Kate
Indeed it was. The bad part is not being sure, after you've done it, whether you've gotten all the odor off your fingers or not. Since I'm already sweaty and dirty most of the time at work, I don't want to add smelly to the list if I can help it.
Ah well that makes more sense. I once upon a time had one of these and like you, Mr S really didn't find the smell to be all that horrible.
HOWEVER I only had one small plant with a few blossums -- not a whole flat/huge plant with lots of them. Good reminder that what is tolerable in small quantities can be horrible in large doses! LOL
We let the one in the office bloom just for the sake of science - we knew it was supposed to smell bad but we were curious as to just HOW bad. UGH... smelled like everyone let it rip and/or took off their shoes and socks all at once! Needless to say, from now on, we are now keeping a careful eye on it and will be pinching the buds off the minute we spot them!
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