String of Bananas
String of Bananas
Curio radicans
Plantae
RARE

Stats

Lifespan
Perennial
Size
Small
Diet
Photosynthetic
Biome
Desert
Range
Sub-Saharan Africa
Movement
Sessile
Breeding
Seeds
Defense
Toxins
Status
Rare

About

This succulent grows long, trailing vines across the rocky cliffs of South Africa. Each banana-shaped leaf contains a translucent window that allows sunlight to reach its core.

Life cycle

  1. 1.
    seed
    A dormant seed waits for water and warmth before germinating.
  2. 2.
    sprout
    A first shoot emerges with cotyledon leaves and a tap root reaching down.
  3. 3.
    sapling
    A young plant grows true leaves and a stem or trunk, putting on height each season.
  4. 4.
    mature
    Fully grown, flowering or fruiting at adult size.

Learn more

Taxonomy

Kingdom
Plantae
Phylum
Tracheophyta
Class
Magnoliopsida
Order
Asterales
Family
Asteraceae
Genus
Curio
Species
Curio radicans