Chrysanthemums are another example of short-day plants, and this is why nurserymen are able to offer them in flower, in pots, the whole year round. Kalanchoes are most useful plants because not only are the flowers bright shades of red, and there is also a bright yellow, but they are also very good house plants; in fact, they are undemanding plants and if you forget to water them no harm will be done as they will stand periods of drought.
The genus includes several species of flowering plants and also plants with decorative foliage, but it is the dwarf species Kalanchoe blossfeldiana, a compact plant with bright red flowers, growing to about 12 in (30 cm) in height, and the smaller variety Kalanchoe 'Vulcan', about 9 in (23 cm), with which we are concerned. The variety or cultivar 'Vulcan' is obtainable with bright red or bright yellow flowers. There are other cultivars similar to K. 'Vulcan'. The plants have thick fleshy green leaves which are often tinged with red round the edges. They have a long blooming period of some two to three months. This long flowering period, and the fact that they are such good house plants, makes them suitable for decorative bowls of mixed house plants.
