Details
| Full name | Gibasis pellucida ‘Baby Martian Ears’. |
| Name status | Accepted, the valid name for a unique cultivar. Registered in 2025 by Stefanie Matabang, the name will be formally established once published in hardcopy (Brickell et al., 2016, Art. 27.6). The name comes from the Star Wars character Grogu, an alien ‘child’ whose coloring is similar to that of the cultivar. The rounded leaf shape resembles the ears of the kawaii version of the character. |
| Origins | Seedling bred in 2024. The seed parent is G. pellucida ‘Purple Bridal Veil’, and the pollen parent is an unnamed large form of Gibasis pellucida. Bred, named, registered, and introduced by Stefanie Matabang in Los Angeles, California, USA. |
| Classification | Gibasis pellucida is in the Commelinaceae family, and sometimes mislabelled as Tradescantia. |
| Legal protection | None. |
| Availability | Newly introduced in the USA. |
Description
Described by Stefanie Matabang with reference to Pantone colours.
| Species | Gibasis pellucida. |
| Growth habit | Similar to the seed parent, the stems grow decumbently and with a vigour characteristic of other G. pellucida cultivars. |
| Foliage | Stems are 6-7mm in circumference. The leaf shape is very variable in different conditions, but generally ovate. In bright light, the leaves are rounded, up to 3.5cm across at the widest point and up to 4cm in length. In moderate light, the leaves are narrower, ranging from 1.5-2.5cm across at the widest point and 3.5-4cm in length. The leaf colour on the upper surface is olive green (Pantone 7490) with the leaf undersides sometimes stained purple (Pantone 2622) that can cover the entire underside of the leaf. The upper leaf surface has a silver sheen that overlays most of the surface, but stops just before the edge of the leaf. |
| Flowers | Flowers profusely. Petals are white and rounded with pointed tips, about 7.5-10mm across. Filaments are white and anthers are yellow (Pantone 115). |
| Comparisons | Compared to the seed parent ‘Purple Brival Veil’, the stems are thicker and the leaves are larger with a more ovate shape. It can be differentiated from Gibasis pellucida ‘Tahitian Bridal Veil’ by the silver sheen on its surface and the generally wider and longer length of the leaf. Compared to the unnamed large form, the stems are generally less thick and grow decumbently and so feature a downward growth habit. Further, the leaves are shorter in length and maintain a silvery sheen over the green color. |
References
Brickell, C. D., Alexander, C., Cubey, J. J., David, J. C., Hoffman, M. H. A., Leslie, A. C., Malécot, V., Jin, X. (2016). International Code of Nomenclature for Cultivated Plants. PDF link.