Wingpod Purslane 'Yubi Yellow'

This is a cultivar of Portulaca umbraticola, not P. oleracea (a common misidentification in cultivation).

I have been doing some research into the taxonomy of Yubi Portulacas, which are called Portea Portulacas here in Australia. Whether the P...Read Moreorteas and Yubis are separate "strains" I am unsure. The precise parentage of the Yubi Portlacas seems to be shrouded in mystery.

The Japanese horticulturalist Hiromi Matsukizono holds the original patents of the Yubi purslanes. He describes them all as stabilized "cultivars of P. oleracea". This suggests that the Yubi series of cultivars are the same species as the wild P. oleracea, recognized by gardeners the world over as a common nuisance weed with miniscule flowers. So how can the Yubi purslanes be the same species?

A botanist friend has suggested to me that a lot of these "species" and the hybrids derived from them are possibly apomictic or apomictic in part. Otherwise it is impossible to explain the vast array of colours that are now available.

I would love to know how Hiromi Matsukizono made them, but I guess this would be a bit like asking Colonel Sanders for the original herbs and spices recipe for Kentucky Fried Chicken!

Aggie Hort. (CEMAP) in Texas apparently bought the rights to extend the work on the Yubi cultivars. I now notice that some American websites give the species name for Yubi purslanes as P. umbraticola, while others use the name P. grandiflora. The great mutability of names suggests to me that the Yubi purslanes, at least in their present form, must be complex hybrids involving many species.

I notice that some people have stated on Dave's Garden and elsewhere that it is possible to grow identical plants from seed. I have never found this to be the case. I have always found them to be sterile. They grow extremely well for me through the summer months, then die in Autumn, never to return again. All my attempts to germinate the seed the following spring have failed.

This suggests to me that the Yubi series are probably not stabilized cultivars of the species P. oleracea. It seems more likely to me that they are hybrids involving several species.

I would be interested to hear from others and learn of their experiences with these cultivars. I would also be keen to know if anyone can provide information about the parentage of the Yubi and Portea purslanes.

Portulaca
There are about 100 species of semi-succulent annuals or perennials in this genus, indigenous to the warm, dry regions o...Read Moref the world. The fleshy leaves vary in color from white to green or red, but it is for their flowers that they are grown--cup-shaped, white, yellow, apricot, pink, purple or scarlet in color, and resembling roses in form.
Cultivation: They are easily grown in all climates. In cooler areas they should not be planted out until the danger of frost has passed. Because they are plants of the deserts they need sun, well-drained soil and only occasional watering. Propagate from seed in spring or cuttings in summer. Check for aphids.
Portulaca oleracea (Purslane)
The oldest member of the genus in cultivation, this is a sprawling annual with small, fleshy leaves that are not in the least decorative. An annoying weed in many warm climates, it has a long history of being eaten as a salad vegetable; it reputedly has a high vitamin content.
Zones 9-11.