What is this?

[pomerinke]

Hi all!

I was hoping someone could help me identify this plant. My mother-in-law has it growing on her balcony. She's losing her memory and can't recall what it is. Apparently my brother-in-law bought it for her, but he doesn't remember either.

The katakana on the pot says "nishimura purabachi"

I'm not sure what that means, and my wife (who is Japanese) couldn't find much for it on a google search. For all we know that could be someone's name. Because it is in Katakana, and not kanji, that originally led me to believe it was the plants name, but I really don't have any context to start looking.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

[KeyWee]

Is it a Ti Plant? I have one that a friend brought me from Hawaii and it looks similar to this.

[imafan26]

It is a ti plant (cordyline fruticosa). There are many different varieties of ti. That one looks like it needs to be potted up. Ti are related to asparagus, lilies, and dracena and form a bulbous root when they get old. They have a large root system and like a lot of water but will live on rain in Hawaii once they are established. They are a good pot plant but you have to keep potting up. They usually grow on in cool shady spots with protection from the wind. It is not frost tolerant but makes a good house plant since it does not need a lot of light. It will get very lanky and thin if it is really dark though. If it gets too tall then just cut it back and it will branch. place the cut branch down side ways and it will root along the stem and it can be cut into sections after it has rooted to create one or more plants. If you plant it vertically in the ground it will still grow but most people don't want to see the cut part of the stem.

It is a good luck plant and is often planted in local yards for good luck. Ti has ornamental and traditional religeous uses, as well as a food wrap for lau lau, to make hula skirts, floral arangements, leis, and in ancient Hawaii, ti roots were cooked and eaten. The neighborhood of Kaimuki was named for the fact that a Ki (ti) oven was once located there. Hawaiian ovens are called imu. So Kaimuki translates to ki or ti oven. The colored ti are ornamental, the green ti are the ones that are traditionally used. The wider leaves are better for hula skirts, rain coats, and for food uses. It is also the traditional one to plant around the house.

https://www.kipapanursery.com/hybridti/hybrid_ti.htm
https://www.ctahr.hawaii.edu/oc/freepubs/pdf/OF-33.pdf

[pomerinke]

Thanks guys! I'll definitely share with the family.

Unfortunately, they'll likely care little about the plant needing a larger pot, so it's likely to die once it reaches a certain point.

[imafan26]

Too bad. They do well with a little TLC. Most of the plants in your picture are familiar to me. The dendrobium and phalaenopsis orchid, ti, sanseveria (Mother in law's tongue), anthurium or maybe a syngonium, and possible a schefflera leaf on the right side of the picture.

[pomerinke]

That's pretty impressive! Where did you learn all of this about plants?