Copper Spoons, Shoe Leather Kalanchoe, Cinnamon Bear

Kalanchoe orgyalis

kal-un-KOH-ee  or-gee-AY-liss

Synonym of Kalanchoe orgyalis (Updated on 12-15-23 from Plants of the World Online): Kalanchoe antanosiana Drake (1903)

Kalanchoe orgyalis Baker is the accepted scientific name for this species of Kalanchoe. It was named and described by John Gilbert Baker in the Journal of Botany in 1882.

The genus, Kalanchoe Adans., was named and described as such by Michel Adanson in Familles des Plantes in 1763.

As of 12-15-23 when this page was last updated, Plants of the World Online lists 169 species in the Kalanchoe genus. It is a member of the plant family Crassulaceae with 36 genera. Those numbers could change as updates are made on POWO.

THERE ARE SEVERAL LINKS AT THE BOTTOM OF THE PAGE FOR FURTHER READING.

I found several Kalanchoe orgyalis at Masts’ Greenhouse while plant shopping with my sister and brother-in-law on June 7, 2018. There are many species of Kalanchoe and I am always glad when I find a new one I have never seen before. I looked the plants over and found one to bring home.

Several Kalanchoe species have fuzzy leaves, but this one really caught my eye. The leaves are fairly small and kind of the color of cardboard.

USEFUL INFORMATION:
Family: Crassulaceae
Origin: Native to Madagascar
Zones: USDA Zones 9b-11 (25 to 40° F)
Size: To 24”
Light: Sun to part shade
Soil: Well-drained. Good quality potting soil amended with pumice (50/50) or additional perlite and chicken grit (2-1-1).
Water: Average during the ground season, barely during the winter.
Flowers: Produces yellow flowers from late winter to early spring.

I water my cactus and succulents regularly during the summer when they are outside. Normally, the cactus on the back porch get enough rain, but the succulents on the front porch are under a roof. Sometimes I get busy during the summer and they get neglected, but they always do just fine. During the winter, I hardly ever water the Kalanchoe unless their leaves start to shrivel or get wrinkly…

I moved the plant tables and most of the potted plants to the front porch on July 4 because of the Japanese Beetle invasion. They changed the light from a partly shady area to mostly sunny. That was too much sun for many of the plants. Now, they are happy on the front porch.

Kalanchoe orgyalis is a slow-growing, small, multi-branched succulent shrub that can reach up to 6’ or more in the wild but are usually smaller. The awesome leaves fold upward from the middle and the upper surface is covered with fine brownish-colored hair that kind of feels like felt. The underside of the leaves are bronze to grey, and with age, the surface will turn the same color.

Now it has two new side branches…

The Llifle (Encyclopedia of Living Forms) website says, “Kalanchoe orgyalis is slow-growing, but eventually becomes a stately plant. It is noted for its bronze-colored, fine sandpaper-like pubescence covering the leaves. In time, the lower leaves fade to silver, creating a nice contrast with the new coppery leaves.”

I moved the plants into the house for the winter on October 10. We are all anxiously waiting for spring already.

<<<<2019>>>>

Finally, the evening temps warmed up enough to put the potted plants back outside on the porches. The Kalanchoe orgyalis had no problems over the winter in a south-facing window in a cool bedroom.

You must admit this is a beautiful plant…

I just keep taking photos even though the plant looks the same as before.

It continues to grow taller…

I had to move the potted plants inside for the winter on October 11 because an “F was in the forecast. I always take the plant’s photos as I move them inside and measure the cactus and some of the succulents. The Kalanchoe orgyalis measured 18 1/2″ tall x 10″ wide.

<<<<2020>>>>

I had to move the potted plants inside for the winter on October 15 (2020) because an “F” was in the forecast. As always, I took photos and measurements and the Kalanchoe orgyalis measured 25″ tall. That’s 6 1/2″ taller than it was last October when I moved the plants inside.

I decided I needed to remove the side branches and top of the plant to regrow them. A few died, but as of 2022, there are still two left. They survived the winter and the summer of 2022. They are still small and not very photogenic. 🙂

<<<<2023>>>>

Even though there was no “F” in the forecast until October 30, it was going to be a rainy week so I moved the potted plants inside on the 23rd and 24th. Time for photos and measurements… 

The two Kalanchoe orgyalis did very well during the summer on the front porch despite the heat and drought. They both measured 10” tall when I moved them inside for the winter. 

Every time I look at these two I always feel like I have some explaining to do. Not to anyone else, but to them. I feel somewhat guilty because I murdered their mother and they know it… I brought their mother home in 2018 when it was smaller than they are now. By the time I brought the plants inside in October 2020, it was 25″ tall and looking somewhat weird. In 2021, I decided to cut off its branches and a few leaves to see if they would root. I cut the main stem in half and figured the mother would grow more leaves and branches, but that didn’t happen. She completely died…Fortunately, two of the stem cuttings survived and now are 10″ tall. I hope they are happy now that I confessed publically.

I will continue adding more photos and information as time goes by. There isn’t much online about this species yet but hopefully, someday there will be more.

I hope you enjoyed this page and maybe found it useful. If you have any comments, questions or suggestions, I would like to hear from you. Please click on “like” if you visited this page. It helps us bloggers stay motivated. 🙂 You can check out the links below for further reading. The links take you directly to the genus and species of this plant.

FOR FURTHER READING:
PLANTS OF THE WORLD ONLINE (GENUS/SPECIES)
LLIFLE (ENCYCLOPEDIA OF LIVING FORMS)
DAVE’S GARDEN
INTERNATIONAL CRASSULACEAE NETWORK