A Plant That Sizzles

The Fourth of July is almost here. I will be sure to buy raspberries, whipped cream, and blueberries. I have visions of making a flag cake. I have potatoes, onions, and more. I plan to make a picnic-worthy potato salad. But maybe you are like me with plans that do not always pan out. Well, take it easy on yourself. It’s summer. Stick to one decoration for the Fourth, get some ice water, eat those berries right out of their pint container, and enjoy.

I am going to simplify this holiday. For my singular decoration for the Fourth, I am using a plant called Frizzle Sizzle as a “firework”. Getting certain decorations ready can be involved. But starting with an incredibly unusual plant, there is no need for bustle and fuss. A simple dressing for this unusual plant’s container, and I am off to the races. Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle has such visual interest on its own that minimal decoration is all it needs to take it from plant to celebratory “firework”, like a little bottle rocket, ready to herald the arrival of the patriotic holiday.

To start, I should tell you about my Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle plant. Growing from a bulb, it starts out small. I am prepared to have Frizzle Sizzle grow to about 8” tall. Now that would be some firework. But I am glad my plant currently is more petite than that, for its grow-pot can fit handily inside a standard plastic drink cup as it gets ready to take on its decoration.

I insert the grow-pot into the cup to ensure a good fit. Eventually, I will remove my Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle from its commercial container, but not for this project. For this, I place container into container, plastic grow-pot into plastic cup. Once I am sure the size is right, I remove Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle for the time being, and I start to decorate.

Simple, simple. That’s all I want here (just in case saving time here buys me time to make the flag cake later, after all). I work with the drink cup, wrapping it with ribbon stored away after a past holiday. Cellophane tape holds the ribbon onto my cup just fine, so I affix the end of my ribbon, make one wrap around the cup’s exterior, and cut the ribbon so that the other end can be taped. I work from top to bottom of the cup, covering its entirety in ribbon. Some fringed pieces of napkin taped to the inside rim of the cup gives a nice effect. And… I’m done! Grow-pot is placed inside decorated drink cup. Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle does the rest to make my quick craft look like a celebratory burst of patriotic color.

Albuca spiralis has foliage of succulent and fairly tubular, thin blades which grow upward from the bulb. Each blade curls beautifully, creating a corkscrew effect at its terminal end. With corkscrew curls to the left and curls to the right, the plant has a lot going on.

Now I have read different notes about how best to care for Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle. I have learned that Frizzle Sizzle may go through a dormant period. I have read that I might expect flowers at one point in the year. 

The most consistent information I have gathered from write-ups about Frizzle Sizzle is that it needs bright sunlight. Because I intend to keep my Frizzle Sizzle indoors, I will place it on my sunniest windowsill, ensuring it can be protected from drafts when temperatures drop. From a friend with experience tending Albuca spiralis, Frizzle Sizzle, I have learned that I should keep its succulent- or cactus-mix growing medium moist but never soggy, not drying it out too much between waterings, and I should quickly remove the plant’s flower spike if I do indeed see one. (Allowing the plant to flower can harm the look of the foliage, as the plant's energy will go toward the act of flowering. Needless to say, the foliage is what this plant is all about.) With this care, indoors, Albuca spiralis just may keep plugging along for months on end, without experiencing a dormancy.

Many caution that plants "programmed" to go dormant should be allowed to do so for their health and best performance. If I see my Albuca spiralis losing its foliage right down to the bulb, I will know dormancy is on the horizon, unavoidable. I will water far less frequently and hold back on liquid houseplant fertilizer, knowing new green blades will rise up from the bulb and spiral once the dormancy period ends. I will place the potted bulb into a darkened location as I await the new growth. But if my plant continues to look healthy with corkscrew spirals, I am all for letting active growth happen for an extended period. I will forego my chance to smell Frizzle Sizzle’s vanilla-scented flowers if it means the unusual greenery of this plant will keep going strong. One snip of the flower stalk as soon as I see it: That will be my approach.

This approach seems to me to be best, considering I intend to use Albuca spiralis as a houseplant. While dormancy outdoors in Frizzle Sizzle’s native Africa typically occurs in summer, perhaps so that this plant can avoid sizzling, scorching temperatures, growing Albuca spiralis indoors seems to me to be a whole other ballgame. The seasons are less relevant for a houseplant, provided the conditions are right. So to give Frizzle Sizzle its best chance at exended and healthy growth, I know I will have to strike a good balance between keeping my actively growing plant moist but not allowing its crown to rot due to overzealous watering. And if I find Frizzle Sizzle's curls going stick-straight, I will move it to an even sunnier spot. (In the event that the foliage straightens out, it will not spiral again. Only new growth will bring a new curly top.)

I have come to terms with the fact that my plans for the flag cake and potato salad are likely to fizzle. Summer can sometimes take us in directions that are not quite according to the original plan, and that is the fun of it. But with this quick decoration and one spectacularly different plant, rest assured, the holiday will sizzle after all.

I am hoping yours will too. Happy Fourth!