What kinda Pandanus?

[Mandrew968]

I love this little guy. Got it, honestly, not knowing if it was a Dracaena or Pandanus. It's obviously a Pandanus with It's triangular growth, but what kind or species? It looks to be profusely clustering but will ultimately be under 3 feet tall... also it's inerm and has a neat blue cast to most of the leaves. Any ideas?

[Silas_Sancona]

  On 11/14/2021 at 5:39 PM, Mandrew968 said:

I love this little guy. Got it, honestly, not knowing if it was a Dracaena or Pandanus. It's obviously a Pandanus with It's triangular growth, but what kind or species? It looks to be profusely clustering but will ultimately be under 3 feet tall... also it's inerm and has a neat blue cast to most of the leaves. Any ideas?

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Apparently a few stay short:  P. pygmaeus,  P. amaryllifolius,  ...possibly  P. baptistii  ( Variegated is the most commonly encountered form. Apparently it can eventually attain some height though. )

[Mandrew968]

I have grown pygmaeus and I remember it being different. amaryllifolius is the edible pandan, right? Yeah, that's not this either, I don't think-grew the edible one before too. Let me see if I have a photo of what I think it is...

[Mandrew968]

When I saw this, I thought they were the same, but I am not so sure now... this species, however was very prostrate. What looks like multiple plants is one sprawling series of rhizomatious stems that top out around 3 feet. I liked it when I saw it...

[Xenon]

Looks like Pandanus amaryllifolius, especially the latest picture (is that Fairchild?)

I've propped and sold dozens of these things; your pandan needs more water imo. They never want to dry out during the warm season and even thrive in semi-aquatic conditions. 

 

[Keys6505]

  On 11/14/2021 at 7:17 PM, Xenon said:

Looks like Pandanus amaryllifolius, especially the latest picture (is that Fairchild?)

I've propped and sold dozens of these things; your pandan needs more water imo. They never want to dry out during the warm season and even thrive in semi-aquatic conditions. 

 

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Have you tried any others?  I have been looking for a P. Furcatus for awhile bc of their 9b-ish tolerance but to no avail.  Guy sells seeds on eBay but he's in Arkansas and I've read they need to be really fresh.  Not a whole lot of Pandanus growing around in Arkansas.

[Xenon]

  On 11/15/2021 at 1:45 AM, Keys6505 said:

Have you tried any others?  I have been looking for a P. Furcatus for awhile bc of their 9b-ish tolerance but to no avail.  Guy sells seeds on eBay but he's in Arkansas and I've read they need to be really fresh.  Not a whole lot of Pandanus growing around in Arkansas.

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No. The P. amaryllifolius are quite tender (coconut tier) and extremely susceptible to crown and root rot in the winter. I have them in constantly wet peat in the summer but shift to cactus mix and kept as bone dry as possible in the winter under a patio to block rain; they go inside under ~35F. They do grow fast enough to work as summer annuals though, just yank them out in the fall and pot up. 

There was(is?) a P. utilis (was already a decent specimen pre 2010 freeze) at a church in Galveston that survived all of the 2010s freezes. I don't know what became of it after Feb 2021. 

[Mandrew968]

This plant is spineless. No serrations on the leaf. Can it still be Pandanus amaryllifolius?

[Xenon]

  On 11/15/2021 at 6:37 PM, Mandrew968 said:

This plant is spineless. No serrations on the leaf. Can it still be Pandanus amaryllifolius?

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P. amaryllifolius is completely 100% spineless with smooth edges. There are some "fake" edible pandan being passed around that are actually P. pygmaeus. 

Edited November 15, 2021 by Xenon

[Mandrew968]

Wow. The one I grew as the edible pandan had teeth on the leaves-not heavy but they were there. I have read they do have serrated leaflets.  I want to believe...

[Mandrew968]

  On 11/14/2021 at 7:17 PM, Xenon said:

Looks like Pandanus amaryllifolius, especially the latest picture (is that Fairchild?)

I've propped and sold dozens of these things; your pandan needs more water imo. They never want to dry out during the warm season and even thrive in semi-aquatic conditions. 

 

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This was at Pinecrest Gardens. What do you see that says it's thirsty. You are probably right but what's the sign?

[Xenon]

  On 11/15/2021 at 7:14 PM, Mandrew968 said:

Wow. The one I grew as the edible pandan had teeth on the leaves-not heavy but they were there. I have read they do have serrated leaflets.  I want to believe...

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Here is an example of the fake spiny pandan (Pandanus pygmaeus?) that smells like grass and not pandan

Edited November 15, 2021 by Xenon

[Xenon]

  On 11/15/2021 at 7:16 PM, Mandrew968 said:

This was at Pinecrest Gardens. What do you see that says it's thirsty. You are probably right but what's the sign?

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Excessive suckering, the yellowing, and the thin leaf blades. Looks like alkaline pH is taking its toll too. Too much midday sun can give them a washed out look as well. 

[Xenon]

Can't get any close up shots right now but here are some P. amaryllifolius I sold. These have the jasmine rice/fresh baked bread aroma 

 

 

[Mandrew968]

  On 11/15/2021 at 7:25 PM, Xenon said:

Here is an example of the fake spiny pandan (Pandanus pygmaeus?) that smells like grass and not pandan

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Yep. That's what I had as the edible pandan. So I have the real one now? I kinda like the profuse suckering... thanks

[Keys6505]

I was going to start a new thread but figured I'd piggy back off of this one.  I found seeds for this Pandanus online but no scientific name.  Can anyone ID?

[Xenon]

  On 11/20/2021 at 3:17 AM, Keys6505 said:

I was going to start a new thread but figured I'd piggy back off of this one.  I found seeds for this Pandanus online but no scientific name.  Can anyone ID?

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Looks like the standard P. utilis