Bryophyllum pinnatum ("Toroso")

Japanese name: トウロウソウ （灯籠草）
Scientific name: Bryophyllum pinnatum

[Overview]
A perennial growing up to 2 m tall.
The stem reaches 2 cm in diameter, and its base becomes woody.
The leaves are opposite; those in the middle of the stem are pinnately compound with 3–5 leaflets, while those on the lower and upper parts of the stem are simple.
The simple leaves and the leaflets of the pinnate leaves are 5–20 cm long and 2–10 cm wide, elliptical, with blunt serrations on the margins.
Bulbils sometimes form.
When a leaf is laid on the ground or soaked in water, adventitious buds emerge from its edge, so the plant is also called "Hakarame" (buds from leaves).
A conical cyme up to 80 cm long emerges at the stem tip, bearing drooping flowers.
A papery, cylindrical calyx encloses the flower.
The calyx tube is 2.5–4.5 cm long and the calyx lobes are triangular, 0.8–1.2 cm long; it is yellow tinged with red.
The flower is 2–4 cm long, and the corolla is 4-lobed, pale green at the base and red at the tip.
The corolla lobes are 1–1.5 cm long and pointed; these parts emerge from the calyx and curve outward.
The fruit is a capsule.

[History]
It has become naturalized in the Nansei Islands and the Ogasawara Islands.

[Uses]
The leaves are used medicinally.

[Cultivation]
Propagate by stem cuttings or leaf cuttings, both of which are easy.
It prefers sunny, well-drained soil.
It is sensitive to cold, so bring it indoors to a sunny spot in winter.
It is a short-day plant that flowers as the days shorten, so it is unlikely to flower in a place that is bright at night.
From spring to autumn, water thoroughly when the soil surface dries; in winter, keep it on the dry side.
Apply slow-release fertilizer from spring to autumn.
Pests and diseases include gray mold and aphids.

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