Got room for another truly amazing houseplant? Of course you do! If you’re an enthusiast, there’s always space for another one – especially when you see Xerosicyos danguyi for the first time. With that adorable succulent foliage, interesting urge to climb, and next-to-nothing care requirements, this beautiful plant, commonly known as silver dollar vine, has gained many admirers. And after you meet it, we bet you’ll be one too.
A Cucumber Cousin
Although it may not look like it at first, silver dollar vine, is a member of the cucumber family, Cucurbitaceae. You’ll notice the resemblance when the plant starts putting out curly tendrils to grab and climb with. In its native Madagascar, X. danguyi is considered a large liana. This means it grows from the ground and readily climbs taller objects – including trees – in search of light. In fact, it can be a bit of a pest – sometimes overtaking trees and making it harder for them to produce fruit or even survive. In an indoor container though, X. danguyi doesn’t get nearly that big or aggressive.
A Beautiful Specimen
Silver dollar vine is a beauty – its common name speaks to its long stems, climbing habit, and plump, succulent, coin-shaped foliage. The leaves are a soothing sage-green in color and almost perfectly circular. They grow alternately on cylindrical stems with curly tendrils and the occasional cluster of star-like, yellow-green blooms. The floral clusters might remind you of a hoya’s when it blooms, although there’s not really a relation between the two houseplants.
Silver dollar vine is gorgeous when it can drape its long arms and eye-catching foliage from a hanging basket. Or with the addition of a trellis or obelisk, it can show off some of those mad liana climber skills it employs in Madagascar too.
Lots of Sun + A Little Water
This plant’s unusual scientific name comes from the Greek xeros meaning dry and sicyos meaning cucumber. So, although X. danguyi is related to our familiar garden cukes, it leads a succulent-style life and requires a lot less water – like, hardly any. To give your silver dollar vine the best life, choose a container that breathes – like terra cotta. A good, easy-draining potting mix formulated for succulents is a must too. Let the potting mix go almost completely dry between nice, thorough soaks. This is especially important in the winter, when sunshine is limited. If you’re in doubt about whether to water, it’s fine to wait a day. Or wait until the plant tells you it’s thirsty by just barely starting to shriveling.
As for light, X. danguyi prefers lots of bright light – even some direct sun – so a location near a sunny south- or west-facing window is best. It can adapt to a less sunny area too, but in that case, you’ll need to be more careful not to overwater.
Grab One When You Can
As you can see, silver dollar vine is a fun one, and it’s currently enjoying a surge in popularity among rare-houseplant collectors. So much so that it’s a challenge to keep it in stock, so if you see one the next time you visit, it’s a good idea to snag it when you can. Of course, we love it too, so if you have questions, we’ll be happy to chat.
