Heirloom plant has readers talking

Last week I wrote about my sister Pam Cook's disappointment at missing the October blooming of her Christ in the Manger plant, also known as a night-blooming cereus.

Like many people who receive the plants as heirlooms, Pam got cuttings last year from our Aunt Mary McDonald's plant while visiting in West Virginia.

The story of Pam's Christ in the Manger, with her photo of the ready-to-bloom plant, appeared last Friday in the Today section. By Saturday morning I'd received a half-dozen e-mail messages, photos and phone calls concerning the plant. Even more responses arrived as the week progressed.

A few people asked if Pam would share cuttings from the plant so they could grow their own. I forwarded those requests to her.

Most people shared photos of their plants in bloom, like the accompanying photo by Katie Murdock of Wilmington.

Here are excerpts from the e-mail messages I received:

"I couldn't help but notice the picture of the bloom on the front page as I became very familiar with this plant when I had the opportunity to live in Bermuda for a year. At first I noticed the spent blooms in the morning (which can be somewhat obscene looking), but having a friend that raised succulents, it didn't take long to remember what they were. ... They are the size of dinner plates, a very pale yellow in color and have a faint vanilla fragrance."

- Annette McInerney

"I read your article on the Manger Flower and thought you might be interested in a recent photo I made of one of my blooms. My son, Jim Dunn, lives in Hampstead, so I read your paper online to stay informed of news in the area."

- James D. Dunn, Tuscaloosa, Ala.

"We received a cutting from my in-laws (Ray Benton of Burgaw) many years ago, and have since given many cuttings to others. ... This past month we had nine blooms open in one night. Like the Cook family, we missed the total openings because we ended up going to bed. ... We also would like to say that the fragrance is overwhelming for this plant."

- Gina and David Benton, Carolina Beach

"Having had my night-blooming cereus for many years and enjoying the blooms, I was so disappointed that Pam missed her bloom. And the aroma, ahh!, similar yet sweeter than a gardenia. I started mine from my mother's plant. I took some pictures one morning after the temperatures were still cool, here in Wilmington, and this bloom survived the night. You can see ... the beautiful detail inside, giving it the name of Christ in the Manger. We've always said it looks like a choir standing up singing."

- Katie Murdock, Wilmington

"A friend gave us one about 15 years ago, and we look forward to its blooms every year. Between June and November it will bloom about four times or so. Since we have pruned it very little, sometimes there will be almost 30 blooms at a time. ... Our plant is so large we trimmed it and potted some of the little branches."

- Virginia Skillman

"I too have this night-blooming plant known as a night-blooming cereus and the blooms are indeed magnificent. But the really appealing thing about the plant is the delicious aroma when the blooms are open. You can literally smell it over the neighborhood and it is a mesmerizing scent. The amazing thing is before it is fully open and once the flower is spent, there is no odor of any kind. None. You can tear it apart and no trace of any scent at all. ... We are often found in our backyard in our pj's photographing its nighttime wonder show."

- Mary Lightfoot

"Ms. Cook: I am originally from West Virginia and my grandmother had a huge Christ in the Manger on her front porch when I was a child. I am really sorry you didn't get to see yours bloom, as it truly is gorgeous. When it opens fully, almost looks like a trumpet lily. At the back of the bloom, it looks exactly like a manger. I only saw it once as a child, but the sight has remained with me for many, many years."

- Mary Alice Sneed, Wilmington

"I've got one that originally belonged to my grandmother. I'd been bugging my mom for it for years but she wouldn't even give me a cutting from it because she was afraid it would keep it from blooming. I think grandma told her it only bloomed once every seven years. Mom finally gave up on it and let me have a small piece of it after about 10 years without it ever blooming. Within a couple of years I got my piece to bloom much to my mom's consternation. The story has a happy ending though. After hers got killed in a frost, I gave her a piece of mine and it bloomed for her just last year. It's a gorgeous flower when it fully opens. Don't tell Pam though."

- Russ Barbour, Wilmington

Jim Ware: 343-2387

jim.ware@starnewsonline.com