Kalanchoe thyrsiflora Bronze Sculpture

Kalanchoe thyrsiflora 'Bronze Sculpture' is a variety of flowering kalanchoe with particularly colourful thyrsus flowers in summer. Its large succulent leaves change colour throughout the seasons, turning silver-white with a bronze to red edge in summer. In early spring, the plant produces an upright inflorescence resembling a sceptre, adorned with small pleasantly scented yellow flowers. Like most kalanchoes, it is a frost-tender perennial plant that can be grown in a pot and stored indoors during winter, in a lightly heated greenhouse or conservatory. In very mild climates, it makes for a unique, highly sculptural, and low-maintenance rock garden plant.

Kalanchoe thyrsiflora 'Bronze Sculpture' belongs to the Crassulaceae family. It is a cultivar derived from the flowering Kalanchoe thyrsus, a succulent plant in rosettes native to South Africa. With fairly rapid growth, this variety forms a clump that will not exceed 50 to 60cm (20 to 24in) in all directions. It is a semelparous perennial plant, meaning that it dies after flowering, within 2 to 4 years. However, it produces suckers at the base of the trunk to ensure its perpetuation. Its large, rounded, and flattened leaves, reaching 15cm (6in) in length, are paired and fused at the base on a fleshy and very short trunk. Depending on the heat and intensity of the sun, they unfold or press against the trunk. The leaf blades, which are glaucous green in colour, are actually a tender green shade but are covered with a silvery bloom. Under the effect of summer sun, their edges turn red then bronze, while the centre becomes silver. Flowering takes place in March-April and may occur a second time in July. A tall floral stem emerges from the mature rosette. This stem can exceed 1.2m (4ft) in height. The inflorescence appears at the tip of the stem, forming a cluster of cymes called a thyrsus. It is composed of numerous small tubular yellow flowers, 1 to 2cm (1in) long. The flowers are pleasantly scented.

Kalanchoe 'Bronze Sculpture' will delight lovers of succulent plants and other cacti. It will find its place in a collection of succulents that can be placed on a patio after the last frost, and then brought indoors in late September to a bright but lightly heated room, between 4 to 15°C (39.2 to 59°F). In a coastal garden where frost is very rare, you can plant it in a sunny rock garden with sedums, agaves, and delosperma, for example.