Three Different Money Trees

 After two weeks of trailing after the money tree the search ended today when my neighbor gave me a cutting of what she says is the money tree plant.  She instructed me that when I plant the cutting to put a coin like a quarter in the bottom of the pot and from that point on it will bring me prosperity.   In Mexico when people pass by this plant they rub the coin shaped round rubbery leaves and good things follow.  As a result I'm told that this plant is very popular south of the border and is now becoming more popular in the USA. 

Here's my cutting in a vase of water waiting to grow some roots and then I'll plant it.

This is my neighbor's money tree plant.  She has had this plant for 20 years and told me she digs it up and takes it with her every time she moves.

What a nice neighbor to share her money tree with me.

Another money tree plant in the neighborhood.

After an internet search I think it's safe to call this the Dwarf Jade Money Tree also known as the Elephant Bush or Elephant's Food.  It comes from South Africa and has the scientific name Portulacaria Afra (portulacaceae).  It is similar to the Jade plant but is more loosely branched with more limber tapering branches, has smaller more rounded leaves and it's stems are a more reddish color.

As a potted plant this money tree seems to be doing very well.

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Supposedly these are easy to propagate by letting your cutting rest in a cool dry place for a day or 2 then putting it into moist washed river sand for about a month to develop some roots then planting in good soil.  Another way is to just put the cutting directly into soil and see what happens.  I've also had past success with succulents by just putting them in water til roots grow & then potting them.

Roberta (another neighbor) claims that she has the money tree and this  turns out to be true also.  My googling revealed one of her plants to be an official Jade plant aka Money Tree or Lucky Plant with the scientific name Crassula Ovata.

Amazingly I discovered by googling that Roberta has a second plant that's been nicknamed the Money Tree and it is this one here next to the chair with the shiny bright green leaves. It's classified as Pachira Aquatica and can grow to nearly 60 feet tall in the wild but much less as a cultivated plant (more like a shrub).  Normally this is a wetland tree growing in freshwater swamps and alongside rivers.

There's a story that that goes something like this: a poor Taiwanese man discovered this tree and gathered it's seeds then planted them in a single pot and as they grew he braided them together.  Many people saw it and wanted to buy it so he went into business cultivating and selling them and became rich as a result hence it got the name money tree.

Another name this money tree is known by is Malibu Chestnut because it produces an edible woody nut that can be eaten raw and tastes like peanuts.  Even the leaves and flowers are edible (cooked as a vegetable) and the seed pods can be ground into flour to make bread but I'm sure Roberta doesn't want anyone eating her ornamental plant!

Here the younger leaves show off their characteristic shine.  The leaves of this tree are about 12 inches long.