Japanese name: マツバギク（松葉菊） Scientific name:Lampranthus spectabilis
[Overview]
A succulent evergreen small shrub 10–30 cm tall, used for potted plants and the like.
The trunk usually spreads by creeping sideways, with the tips rising up.
The leaves are opposite, slender and rod-shaped, triangular in cross section.
The flowers are reddish purple and 5 cm across; what look like petals are staminodes, which are thin and glossy.
They all open together in the sun and close at night and in cloudy weather.
[Cultivation]
Propagate by stem cuttings.
It prefers a sunny, well-drained place, and sandy soil suits it.
It dislikes excess moisture.
It is somewhat sensitive to cold, but it tolerates dryness and sea wind and grows well even in poor soil.
