Trying to identify this sentimental plant...

[Hannah Price]

Hi there! I'm trying to identify a plant that my brother and I inherited from my mother after she passed away. All I know if that it's VERY hardy and favours underwatering. My mother did not have a green thumb and she had this plant for as long as can remember without ever repotting it! I want to ensure it stays alive (repot it, feed it, etc.) and perhaps take a cutting from it. I would love your help identifying it! Thank you in advance...

 

[oneeye]

Can you take a photo that shows the whole plant in the pot?

 

[Hannah Price]

Sure thing. It's attached. Thanks for getting back to me! It used to look a bit different to this (shorter with foliage on both sides).

 

[oneeye]

Your plant looks so cool and I don't know what kind of a vine it is, but I know someone else from the forum may know what it is. I wouldn't repot it or fertilize it at this time, because your plant is doing well without anything. If you up pot the plant into a larger container you will raise the water volume in the root zone. That can suffocate the oxygen from the roots if the plant is watered the same. Also fertilizer can drop the pH if there is already enough nutrients in the container. Thank you for sharing.

 

[Hannah Price]

Thanks oneeye! Yes, I found out what it is today - a China Doll plant. This one had got a bit out of control, which makes sense considering its history, but I'm just so happy to know And your advice is spot on.

 

[Marck]

Greetings, welcome to the Forums.

China-Doll (Radermachera sinica), also known as Serpent Tree, is an evergreen tree or shrub, in the Trumpet-vine Family (Bignoniaceae),
Native to the Himalayas, southern China, Taiwan, and Vietnam. The China-doll tree has ferny, compound leaves and can produce white trumpet flowers in late Spring or Summer, when large enough and grown in sufficient light.
Its attractive foliage has made it a popular house plant, but it can take light frosts and is grown outdoors in USDA Zone 9 and up.