My Experience with Stephania

The Stephania is unusual when compared to the other plants so far. This genus comes from Asia and Australia instead of Africa. As such, the plant acts slightly different than the rest. The leaves are connected by the center. Some species also have circle shaped leaves. The caudex is also considered more of a tuber than a bulb, but it still fits this category. Something else that makes this genus unique is the fact that there is a bit of sexual dimorphism. Resulting in plants that are either male or female.

For care, I treat it mostly the same as the other succulent bulbs mentioned so far. They do like a slightly higher amount of water though. This being a result of them not being an African succulent. It does grow on and around rocks and limestone though. Something it has in common with Dioscorea.

There has been a huge issue with this plant. Poaching was common. From the sound of it, many of the plants in Europe were obtained this way. There has been more success in propagating Stephani. Seeds can be used to reproduce this plant. Stephania in nature grow very slowly. Nutrients are in less quantity when growing in rocky areas. Those grown in captivity grow much quicker. Nutrients are easy to come by.