Portulaca Molokiniensis
We were kayaking off Molokini crater in Hawaii when one of our party started screaming and slamming the water with their paddle. We were spread out along the reef and could not see what the problem was. As we all paddled furiously towards our screaming friend, we see her kayak rise out of the water on the back of a huge tiger shark! As we closed in we all started to slam the water with our paddles. The giant shark was unimpressed and started to gnaw on the tip of the kayak! We stiff-armed the shark with the ends of our paddles and all started en mass towards the shore. We decided we needed a break and decided to explore the island. We discovered a fantastic miniature succulent tree there growing to 18” tall with multiple woody branches and amazing paddle shaped horizontally orientated leaves. We have propagated this unusual plant and sell them in pint containers. Plants are 3-4” tall and well rooted.