Pukeiti

Family: Araceae (Arum)

Life form: Shrub - monocot

Comments: Habit: Low shrub with a compact, tidy growth habit. It rarely exceeds 1x1m, and usually grows to around 75cm high.
Foliage: Evergreen with attractive lobed leaves.
Cultivation information: Grows well in full sun or as an understory plant. Prefers warm conditions and good drainage.
History: Native to Brazil, but is widely cultivated as a landscape plant in tropical, subtropical and warm temperate climates. It was originally reported to be a selected chance seedling from an Australian nursery and was named Philodendron 'Winterbourn' and protected under Plant Breeder Rights in Australia. It was renamed 'Xanadu' by House Plants of Australia and released as their plant of the year in 1988. However it is now almost certain that this plant is not a hybrid or nursery grown cultivar but actually originated from seed collected from a wild plant in Brazil. This plant has now been described as the species Philodendron xanadu, by Croat, Mayo & J.Boos.