Explore some of the best Elephant bush types if you want to include a good luck plant in your home or garden!
Portulacaria afra or Elephant Bushes are low-maintenance succulents that are great for beginners. Straight from South Africa, these versatile plants range from towering shrubs to sprawling groundcovers, thriving even in tough conditions. Read along to learn more about some of the best Elephant Bush types to grow!
Best Elephant Bush Types
1. Standard Elephant Bush
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra
You may also know it as Spekboom, Miracle plant, or Mini Jade plants. This classic variety hails from South Africa, featuring lush, glossy leaves attached to reddish-brown stems. It has a trailing habit that tends to grow pretty fast.
Many gardening enthusiasts prefer to make bonsai plants from this one because of their resilient and easy-to-handle nature.
Fun Fact: The foliage is edible in southern Africa, usually in salads or soups to add a tangy flavor, and is also used as medicine to treat several ailments traditionally.
2. Variegated Elephant Bush
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Variegata’
The best one on the list! Variegated Elephant Bush with creamy white and marble green variegations on its tiny leaves paired with pink-tinge stems, this one is a pretty interesting colorful variety.
However, the intensity of the color depends highly on the lighting conditions it receives. The more light, the brighter the pink will be, so try to place this plant near a windowsill that is facing toward the south or east direction. Due to its tolerance to harsh sun rays, many gardeners grow it in front of soft plants as a sun barrier!
3. Cork bark
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Cork Bark’
Shrub, succulent nature. perennial, full sun to partial shade. grows 3-4 feet high and spreads 2-3 feet. The flowers are pink and bloom from late spring to early summer. Can be propagated from stems and can tolerate poor soil as well.
This miniature jade has a bushy trunk and resembles a bonsai. Like most of its cousins, ‘Cork Bark’ has red-brown stems with half-inch-long emerald-green leaves.
4. Yellow Rainbow Bush
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Aurea’
The Yellow Rainbow Bush, also known as Yellow Elephant Food, is a slower-growing variety compared to the classic ones. It has a compact, sprawling nature of growth that can reach up to 30-50 cm high in its native habitat.
This Portulacaria variety gracefully flourishes in direct sunlight, and with this, the foliage turns into its most bright yellow shades. However, it can adapt to partial shade conditions as well.
Pro Tip: Just beware of overwatering or planting it in heavy clay soils, as these can cause root rot quite easily.
5. Kaleidoscope Rainbow Bush
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Medio-picta’
The ‘Medio-picta’ is a true masterpiece among all the variants, it does live up to its name with its colorful display. This slow-growing variety features bright reddish-pink stems adorned with ovate leaves highlighted with creamy white bands or stripes, occasionally turning fully white.
Kaleidoscope Rainbow Bush plants rarely bloom but may surprise you with tiny lavender-pink blooms! Bonsai enthusiasts can experiment with this lovely showstopper.
6. Dwarf Elephant Food
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Prostrate Form’
Compact and undeniably charming, the Prostrate Form of Portulacaria afra is a ground-hugging variety. Its trailing reddish-brown stems and dense cluster of emerald green foliage create a lush carpet or ground cover effect and doesn’t grow more than 6 inches tall.
It will reward you with its tiny pale lavender blooms that may appear in summer under very dry conditions to add that graceful charm.
Fun Fact: This plant is also called “Groundcover Jade” and is known for its incredible drought tolerance that is best for xeriscaping and low-maintenance gardens.
7. Large Leaf Elephant Bush
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra macrophylla
The Macrophylla variety can grow up to 12 feet in height, the highest growing among the others. Along with this, it showcases thick reddish-brown stems and emerald-green leaves, nearly twice the size of its more common relatives. The Large leaf Elephant bush is native to Northern South Africa and Mozambique.
It thrives in rocky slopes under warm conditions while slightly less tolerant to frosty winters than its smaller-leafed cousins! However, it can still withstand temperatures up to 27 F with frozen tips.
Fun Fact: This variety goes by several other names including ‘Mammoth’ and ‘Limpopo Form’ and it is also edible.
8. Manny Baby Jade Plant
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Manny’
Charming and compact, ‘Manny’ is a delightful variety to have in one’s collection of Xeriscape houseplants. Its glossy green leaves are marked with delicate white streaks that give it a unique overall appeal.
This beauty is perfect for coffee tables, patios, and miniature gardens. As a Xeriscape plant, it effortlessly thrives in minimal water and also proves to be fire-resistant. Apart from its ornamental value, ‘Manny’ doubles as a medicinal herb and forage plant.
9. Narrow Elephant Food
Botanical Name: Portulacaria afra ‘Skyscraper’
This unique upright cultivar of the Elephant bush lives up to its name with a tall, slender growth habit that reaches heights of up to 8 feet! The most eye-catching appearance comes from the emerald-green foliage on its reddish-brown stems.
It is ideal for both sunny and shaded spots, and requires very minimal irrigation, thriving in well-drained soil.
Fun Fact: This plant is a carbon sponge, absorbing atmospheric CO2 efficiently as it uses C3 and CAM pathways to make it highly adaptable to fluctuating temperatures.
One more thing—if you love cats and dogs, these varieties are good to go for you because jade plants are toxic to them but these Elephant Bush Types are not! So, are you ready to add some of these interesting varieties to your home garden? We love to know which one you are going to start with! Share with us in the comment section below.
