Blooming of the Queen of the Night

Finally, my brother's Queen of the Night (Epiphyllum oxypetalum) bloomed again!


The Queen of the Night, also called epiphyllum, is a very pretty flower that blooms at night. Being a cactus that originated from the deserts in Central and South America, it is believed that the epiphyllum blooms at night as it is cooler and thus reduces water loss.

Some species of epiphyllums do bloom in the day, especially the hybrids which produce brightly coloured flowers.


Here's how the plant looks like. The word "epiphyllum" in Latin means "upon the leaf", and it's not hard to see how it gets this name from the photo above.