I was browsing at our best but expensive nursery this morning, and spotted a variegated Jatropha integerrima. Not something I had seen before!
Since I love variegated foliage I had to have it of course, but there was only one (3 gal) plant, and with no tag.... deep breath, on my cart it went, and to the checkout. The guy there could not find it in the computer, someone else jumped in to help him and between them they decided on using the SKU for 'Jatropha integerrima pink' and $ 17 later I walked (should I say ran? ) out of the store! I feel like I got a real steal, especially after checking on the web and finding small 4 inch plants on EBay for $ 35......

Now I'm trying to figure out whether this will do well in a corner of my yard that gets only morning sun...

It's beautiful. If I were you I would not answer the door for a while, they will probably come looking for you!!

I know, I was sure they would come after me in the Parking Lot

That's a lovely plant Hetty, and you got a great deal or should I say steal!

Very nice!

Good grab-n-go, Hetty!

Hetty, you probably saved the plant from certain death. It would have been relegated to the dead and dying table next week.

LOL@ your thread title

If they just had the one plant,I bet it got mixed in with the regular pink ones from their supplier, or maybe it's a sport... lucky you for spotting it!

Jill, it is not a sport, the tag is from a reputable grower and lists it as variegated. Maybe they wanted to try it out, but I sure am glad I poached it Sandi this is the one nursery in town that actually cares for their plants. Again, I feel I was very lucky to be there!

Right place at the right time.

Glad it happened to such a nice person! Hope the plant thrives for you this summer.

Beautiful variegation, and a great steal. That plant won the lotto too, it gets a good home that appreciates it.

thanks, ladies!

Hetty: Wow, that is a gorgeous plant ... and I agree, sounds like a great deal/steall indeed!

Hetty, great plant! Interestingly, I have been after a pink Jatropha (integerrima pink) for quite a while! It is a hard plant to find in Jacksonville. I would trade my plain red one in a heartbeat. Your new baby is beautiful. Congratulations!

Carol

Carol - the pink are not hard to find here, and I would be happy to send you a cutting or two of mine.

Hetty, that is so kind of you to offer! I would take you up on it except that I have tried to root red Jatropha integerrima several times and have not yet had success. I'm not sure what I'm doing wrong.

As recommended somewhere, I cut back my jatropha (mother plant) severely, by half, on March 9. I found several places on the internet that said to do that to promote bushiness and mine was getting quite leggy. I took all of the top growth for cuttings, removed all but a couple leaves, used powdered rooting hormone and put them in a fast-draining but damp soil in a shady place. These were last year's growth which means they were woody, which I had read was good for cuttings. All of the leaves eventually fell off. I had read they would do that. But following that, they are supposed to reward me with new growth. That they did not do. I have three brown stems in each pot. They still feel firm, but there are no leaves or even signs of leaves. By the way, my jatropha (mother plant) did start to leaf out on March 21 and was fully leafed out within about 7-10 days. It is almost ready to bloom. So cutting it back did work - perfectly. But the cuttings did not work out as well. I am quite experienced in general with rooting cuttings and have had lots of luck with many other plants but not with jatropha.

If you have an idea of my mistakes and/or how I can get them to root, I would love a pink one. I would be more than happy to either pay for postage or in return, send you anything I have (I have a computer list of all of my plants that I could send.). But right now, I think I would just kill them. ??

What do you think?

Carol

I have no other suggestions than to do what you did. Why don't I stick a few pieces in soil and if I get a rooted one I'll trade you.
Mind you, sometimes they lose their leaves and look dead - I recently transplanted one and was sure I killed it, but it flushed out after about a week of looking dead...

Awww - that would be great! Maybe you will have more luck! I really appreciate your trying.

At what point did you move yours into sun? The cuttings I potted up on March 9 are three sticks per pot and still have no leaves. They are still in full shade. Should I move one of the pots to more sun? It seems like there is nothing to lose at this point!

Carol

That is how I would feel.
Mine came from a nursery - so it went straight into the sun. But I moved its location recently (a mature plant now). Definitely had some shock.