Dorstenia gigas is a weird and wonderful succulent plant in the fig family. Endemic to Socotra, an island east of the Horn of Africa and south of the Arabian Peninsula, D. gigas is adapted to an arid environment. It is prized by collectors for the large caudex, or thickened stem, it can develop for water storage. Our largest specimens are over five feet tall and have caudices over eight inches in diameter. We grow D. gigas in pure pumice; in their natural habitat they can be found growing in the rocks of cliffs. We withhold water for some time in the winter months so our plants will go into dormancy as they do in nature.
Pollinating and collecting seed from these plants can be tricky. Dorstenia have alien looking inflorescences, or flower clusters, with both female and male flowers. However, the female flowers mature first, so separate inflorescences with male flowers have to be found. Additionally, Dorstenia gigas is not self-compatible, so two separate plants have to be flowering with different sexes at the same time. We use a paintbrush to pick up pollen from male flowers and carry it to female flowers. Because seed will explode from mature fruit, we cover pollinated inflorescences with netting in order to easily collect the seeds.
Dorstenia gigas is only one of many representatives of the genus we have in our collection. Other succulent species include D. foetida, D. horwoodii, and D. lavrani. We grow non-succulent tropical Dorstenia species as well.