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{{Taxobox
| color = lightgreen
| name = ''Kalanchoe daigremontiana''
| image = Bryophyllum daigremontianum nahaufnahme2.jpg
| image_width = 204px
| image_caption = Young plants on leaf
| regnum = [[Plant]]ae
| divisio = [[Flowering plant|Magnoliophyta]]
| classis = [[Magnoliopsida]]
| ordo = [[Saxifragales]]
| familia = [[Crassulaceae]]
| genus = ''[[Kalanchoe]]''
| sectio = ''[[Bryophyllum]]''
| species = '''''K. daigremontiana'''''
| binomial = ''Kalanchoe daigremontiana''
| binomial_authority = Raym.-Hamet & [[Joseph Marie Henry Alfred Perrier de la Bâthie|H.Perrier]]
| synonyms =
''Bryophyllum daigremontianum'' <small>Raym.-Hamet & H.Perrier</small>
}}

'''''Kalanchoe daigremontiana''''' syn. '''''Bryophyllum daigremontianum''''' also called '''Devil's Backbone''' or '''Mother of Thousands''' is a [[succulent plant]] native to [[Madagascar]]. This plant is distinguished by its ability to propagate via [[vivipary]].

== Classification ==
Plants of the genus ''[[Kalanchoe]]'' able to propagate [[vivipary|viviparously]] are often included in section ''[[Bryophyllum]]'', therefore ''Kalanchoe daigremontiana'' Hamet & Perrier is [[Synonym (taxonomy)|synonymously]] called ''Bryophyllum daigremontianum'' (Hamet & Perrier) Berger.

== Morphology ==
Plants reach up to 1 m (3 feet) tall with opposite, fleshy [[leaf shape|oblong]]-[[leaf shape|lanceolate]] "leaves" that reach 15-20 cm (6-8 inches) long and about 3.2 cm (1.25 inches) wide. These are medium green above and blotched with purple underneath. The margins of these leaf-like organs have spoon-shaped [[bulbil|bulbiliferous]] spurs that bear young plants. The plantlets form roots while on the plant. The "leaves" are actually short, [[determinate]], leaf-like [[branches]] that can be termed [[phylloclade]]s or [[cladode]]s.

Adult plants can also develop [[lateral roots|lateral root]] structures on its main stalk, as high up as 10-15 cm from the ground. The upper leaves of the plant tend to develop into disproportionately large structures, causing the main stalk to bend downwards and the lateral roots to take up root of their own, anchoring into the soil and eventually developing new primary stalks which establish themselves as independent plants.

Furthermore, ''Kalanchoe daigremontiana'' can go through a flowering season, where the main stalk elongates vertically upwards by as much as 30 cm, within a couple of days, developing an umbrella-like terminal [[inflorescence]] (a compound [[cyme]]) of small bell-shaped pink flowers. Flowering is, however, not an annual event and will occur sporadically if at all.

== Physiology ==
Plants of the genus Kalanchoe as well as many other plants growing in arid regions photosynthesize through [[Crassulacean acid metabolism]].

''K. daigremontiana'' is [[toxic]], it contains a [[cardiac glycoside]] - [[daigremontianin]].

== Distribution ==
[[Image:Kalanchoe_daigremontiana_distribution_in_florida.jpg|250px|right|thumb|''Kalanchoe daigremontiana'' county distribution in [[Florida]].]]
[[Image:Kalanchoe_daigremontiana_hawaii.jpg|250px|right|thumb|Flowering ''Kalanchoe daigremontiana'' at Kanaio, [[Maui_County%2C_Hawaii|Maui, Hawaiʻi]].]]
''K. daigremontiana'' is native to southwest Madagascar, it has been introduced to [[Florida]], [[Puerto Rico]], and [[Hawaii]] where it has gained a foothold.

== References ==
[http://plants.usda.gov/java/profile?symbol=KADA United States Department of Agriculture]

[http://www.killerplants.com/plant-of-the-week/20030324.asp killerplants.com]

[http://www.plantoftheweek.org/week375.shtml plantoftheweek.com]

[http://www.blankees.com/house/plants/backbone.htm Poisonous houseplants]

== External links ==
[http://calphotos.berkeley.edu/cgi/img_query?stat=BROWSE&query_src=photos_flora_sci&where-genre=Plant&where-taxon=Bryophyllum+daigremontianum photos of inflorescences]
{{Commons|Kalanchoe daigremontiana}}


[[Category:Crassulaceae]]

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