Plant Identification

April 8, 2013 9:33 AM

This is our plant, Plant. What kind of plant is it? I picked Plant up a few years ago in a fancy garden store but it was unlabelled and they didn't know what it was either. A few more clues inside.

Additional information: it has very sharp little thorns all along the stems, and interesting peanut-shaped, spongy tubers on the roots. It's never shown any inclination to flower. The stems are woody, number of leaves per cluster is variable, on the whole Plant is disorganised in shape. It likes sun. It's well-nigh indestructible, at least we haven't been able to destroy it. It's a bit prone to mite infestations.

I haven't seen anything resembling it in houseplant websites. It's vaguely hemp-like but has thorns, I guess it's some sort of Rosales? I repotted it yesterday and discovered the tubers so now I'm curious!

posted by Erasmouse to Home & Garden (3 answers total)

Best answer: Can't help you personally, but I know several people who've IDd plants using Dave's Garden. "Do you have a mystery plant or tree? Post an image (preferred) and/or a detailed description, and your fellow gardeners will help you figure out what it is."
posted by showbiz_liz at 9:49 AM on April 8, 2013 [1 favorite]

My first guess was spider fern. I'm not an expert by any means, but it looks like a possibility!
posted by Eicats at 11:38 AM on April 8, 2013

Response by poster: Yay for the Dave's Garden suggestion! They sorted me out. Plant is an asparagus fern!
posted by Erasmouse at 11:47 AM on April 8, 2013 [1 favorite]