Plants of the Week

Mackaya bella

Common names: mackaya, forest bell-bush, river bells, beautiful mackaya (Eng.); bosklokkiesbos, blouklokkiesbos (Afr.); umavuthwa, uzwathi, uphulule, icaphozi (Zul.

Family: Acanthaceae

A graceful shrub or small tree with slender branches bearing glossy, dark green leaves and beautiful sprays of showy, white to mauve, bell-shaped flowers...

01 / 10 / 2001 | Thompson T Mutshinyalo | Walter Sisulu NBG

Leucadendron laxum

Common names: Bredasdorp conebush (Eng.); vleirosie (Afr.).

Family: Proteaceae

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01 / 10 / 2001 | Hanneke Jamieson | Kirstenbosch NBG

Tapinanthus rubromarginatus

Common names: red mistletoe, bird lime, lighted candles; voelent, vuurhoutijies (A)

Family: Loranthaceae

This is a semi-parasitic aerial shrub with specialized roots called haustoria that grow into the wood of the host plant and extracts oil minerals...

24 / 09 / 2001 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG

Lachenalia mathewsii

Common names: none on record

Family: Hyacinthaceae

Lachenalia mathewsii is an attractive, deciduous, winter-growing bulb, standing 10-20 cm tall....

24 / 09 / 2001 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG

Pelargonium suburbanum subsp. suburbanum

Common names: dune pelargonium (Eng.) wildemalva

Family: Geraniaceae

A groundcover with showy magenta flowers in spring and early summer, ideal for sandy banks, rockeries and hanging baskets. Many species and hybrids of Pelargonium are...

17 / 09 / 2001 | Hanneke Jamieson | Kirstenbosch NBG

Dombeya rotundifolia

Common names: wild pear (English); drolpeer (Afrikaans); iNhliziyonkhulu (Zulu); mohlabaphala (N. Sotho); motubane (Tswana); nsihaphukuma (Tsonga)

Family: Malvaceae

This lovely tree gets its English common name, wild pear, from the masses of white blooms which appear before the leaves in early spring. It bears a resemblance...

17 / 09 / 2001 | Alice Aubrey | Walter Sisulu NBG

Freylinia tropica

Common names: Waterberg bell-bush, blue honey-bell, blue freylinia (Eng.), inyanga hedge plant (Shona)

Family: Scrophulariaceae

This shrub makes a good garden subject for summer rainfall areas....

10 / 09 / 2001 | Thompson T Mutshinyalo | Walter Sisulu NBG

Felicia elongata

Common names: Saldanha felicia, tricolour felicia (Eng.), driekleurblommetjie (Afr.)

Family: Asteraceae

Felicia elongata is a striking perennial daisy, with large white or mauve flowers. What makes this Felicia so different from the other felicias, is the...

10 / 09 / 2001 | Liesl Van der Walt | Kirstenbosch NBG

Schotia brachypetala

Common names: weeping boer-bean, tree fuchsia, African walnut (Eng.); huilboerboon (Afr.); umfofofo, umgxam, ishimnumyane (Xhosa), ihluze, umgxamu, uvovovo (Zulu),

Family: Fabaceae

A handsome tree with a wide-spreading, rounded crown, and bright red, nectar-filled flowers in spring and early summer that attract many birds and insects;...

03 / 09 / 2001 | Giles Mbambezeli | Kirstenbosch NBG

Erythrina acanthocarpa

Common names: Tambookie Thorn, Tambuki Thorn (Eng.), Tamboekiedoring, Tamboekiewortel, Wag-'n-Bietjiedoring (Afr.)

Family: Fabaceae

This is a very attractive shrub with striking red and green flowers....

03 / 09 / 2001 | Sharon Turner | Walter Sisulu NBG

Veltheimia bracteata

Common names: forest lily, forest sand-lily, winter red hot poker (Eng.); sandui, sandlelie (Afr.)

Family: Hyacinthaceae

Veltheimia bracteata is a beautiful deciduous bulb with a moderate to fast growth rate. The inflorescence is a dense raceme of tubular flowers carried...

27 / 08 / 2001 | Trevor Adams | Kirstenbosch NBG

Acokanthera oppositifolia

Common names: Bushman's Poison; Boesmansgif (Afrikaans); inHlungunyembe (Zulu); iNtlungunyembe (Xhosa)

Family: Apocynaceae

The Bushman's poison is a medium to large woody shrub with attractive hard dark green leaves. ...

27 / 08 / 2001 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG

Hermannia saccifera

Common names: cumin hermannia (Eng.); komynbossie (Afr.)

Family: Malvaceae

Hermannia saccifera is fairly widespread along the southern coast of South Africa, where it occurs on stony clay slopes from the Riviersonderend mountains...

20 / 08 / 2001 | Bernard Brown | Kirstenbosch NBG

Clivia miniata

Common names: bush lily (Eng.); boslelie (Afr.); umayime (Zulu)

Family: Amaryllidaceae

A striking plant, an international star, with its dark green leaves and trumpet-shaped orange flowers, Clivia miniata is the ideal plant for the...

20 / 08 / 2001 | Alice Aubrey | Walter Sisulu NBG

Erica cerinthoides

Common names: fire erica, fire heath, red hairy heath, rooihaartjie, klipheide

Family: Ericaceae

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13 / 08 / 2001 | Anthony Hitchcock | Kirstenbosch NBG

Elegia tectorum

Common names: Cape thatching reed, deckreed (Eng.), dakriet, dekriet (Afr.)

Family: Restionaceae

This restio makes a most attractive garden plant, and can be used for thatching....

13 / 08 / 2001 | Hanneke Jamieson | Kirstenbosch NBG

Buddleja salviifolia

Common names: sagewood, butterfly bush, mountain sage (Eng.); saliehout (Afr.); ewanci, ilotana, igqange (Xhosa); igwangi, iloshane, ilothane, ilotshane, mupambati

Family: Scrophulariaceae

This small tree is deliciously scented in early spring....

06 / 08 / 2001 | Thompson T Mutshinyalo | Walter Sisulu NBG

Felicia echinata

Common names: dune daisy, prickly felicia (Eng.), bloublommetjie (Afr.)

Family: Asteraceae

Felicia echinata is easy to recognize by its glossy leaves that are edged with small white teeth and curved to form a sharp tip. This prickly protection...

06 / 08 / 2001 | Liesl Van der Walt | Kirstenbosch NBG