I am indeed familiar with it, and I wrote an article about it a few years ago
for International Bonsai magazine. I don't have room to tell you everything;
ask if you have a specific question. It is actually very easy to grow as a
potted plant or a quasi-bonsai. I have never grown it from seeds. It has never
bloomed for me, but growers in Europe get it to bloom.
The most interesting thing about this tree is that it is both a caudiciform,
with fat storage roots, and a pachycaul, with a layer of storage tissue under
the bark on the trunk & older branches. You can find pictures & other
references on the Web. I have never been able to root cuttings, but severed
storage roots sprout easily. It has no regular dormancy, but if it is chilled
or otherwise annoyed, it will lose its leaves & nap for several weeks.
Iris,
Central NY, Zone 5a, Sunset Zone 40
"If we see light at the end of the tunnel, It's the light of the oncoming
train."
Robert Lowell (1917-1977)