Plants of the Week

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E.g., 04/12/2024
E.g., 04/12/2024

Moraea hiemalis

Moraea heimalis. Photo Richard Boon
Common names: winter yellow moraea
Family: Iridaceae

A threatened species that is endemic to the grasslands of central KwaZulu-Natal, its striking, rich golden yellow flowers stand out in the winter landscape...

12 / 12 / 2022 | Mlondi Sikhosana | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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Moraea gigandra

Moraea gigandra
Common names: grootflappie (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

With its arrestingly showy, mauvish blue to deep blue spring blooms, ease of cultivation and the largest flowers of all the peacock moraeas, Moraea gigandra...

19 / 09 / 2005 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Moraea elegans

Moraea elegans
Common names: poutulp (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

The striking yellow and orange flowers with variable bold markings, and its extreme ease of cultivation make this elegant spring-flowering species an essential...

04 / 09 / 2006 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Moraea ciliata

Moraea ciliata
Common names: growweuintjie (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Moraea ciliata is a stemless geophyte (a deciduous perennial with underground renewal buds) with 3or 4 narrow and channelled leaves. The flowers are white,...

15 / 02 / 2010 | Colleen Rust | Hantam NBG
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Moraea aristata

Moraea aristata flowers
Common names: bouooguintjie (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Moraea aristata is a beautiful late winter- and spring-flowering peacock moraea with white blooms marked with light to deep iridescent blue eyes or...

27 / 09 / 2010 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Moraea amissa

Moraea amissa
Family: Iridaceae

Moraea amissa has all the ingredients to be an absolutely sensational plant. It is probably one of the most rare and most threatened plants in the...

27 / 03 / 2006 | Ismail Ebrahim | CREW
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Monsonia vanderietiae

Monsonia vanderietiae
Common names: Albany bushman’s candle, Albany candle bush (Eng.), Albany boesmankers, grootkersbos (Afr.); igcegceleya, igceya (isiXhosa)
Family: Geraniaceae

A beautiful, stunted, low growing, tough-looking perennial with shiny leaves, succulent greyish stems and large, delicate-looking, creamy white flowers...

17 / 01 / 2022 | Nomama Mei | Kwelera NBG
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Monsonia speciosa

Monsonia speciosa flowers
Common names: umbrella (Eng.); sambreeltjie (Afr.)
Family: Geraniaceae

Monsonia speciosa is a hardy, summer-deciduous herb bearing masses of large showy pink flowers in spring (southern hemisphere)....

26 / 04 / 2010 | Ian Oliver | Karoo Desert NBG
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Monsonia glauca

Monsonia glauca
Common names: dysentery herb (Eng.); naaldebossie, keitabossie, keitabossie (Afr.).
Family: Geraniaceae

This is a perennial herb with a woody base growing in scrubby grassland....

29 / 09 / 2014 | T.T. Masupa | Pretoria NBG
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Monsonia angustifolia

Monsonia angustifolia.  Flower
Common names: Crane's bill; alsbos, angelbossie, teebossie (Afr.), malengoana (Southern Sotho), Tee ya thaba (Sepedi)
Family: Geraniaceae

...

06 / 01 / 2014 | T.T. Masupa | Pretoria NBG
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Monopsis unidentata

Monopsis unidentata growing with  a diascia
Common names: wild violet
Family: Lobeliaceae

This lovely, dainty plant caught our attention and was collected growing wild with buffalo grass (Stenotaphrum secundatum) around Nature's Valley....

18 / 12 / 2000 | Liesl Van der Walt | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Monopsis lutea

Monopsis lutea
Common names: yellow monopsis, gold lobelia; geel lobelia (Afr.)
Family: Lobeliaceae

The riot of bright yellow flowers covering this trailing groundcover makes it an absolute must for colour in the garden in summer. The pretty flowers resemble...

23 / 12 / 2013 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Monodora junodii

Leaves and flower
Common names: green-apple (Eng.); groenappel (Afr.); ndzivila (xiTsonga); umKotshi (isiZulu)
Family: Annonaceae

Imagine a tree with a flower like an orchid bloom; one so unusual that next to nothing is known about how to grow it. Would this not be a major garden...

08 / 05 / 2006 | Hugh Glen | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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Monoculus monstrosus

Common names: one-eye monster (Eng.); trekkertjie (Afr.).
Family: Asteraceae

This plant is now called Osteospermum monstrosum (Burm.f.) J.C.Manning & Goldblatt...

11 / 07 / 2022 | | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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Monochoria africana

Monochoria africana as painted by Gill Condy in Flowering Plants of Africa. Copyright Gill Condy
Common names: there are no known common names for this rather rare plant
Family: Pontederiaceae

Next time you go to the Kruger National Park, try to spot Monochoria africana, one of the most beautiful, rare, indigenous aquatic plants in...

17 / 07 / 2006 | R Glen | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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Monilaria chrysoleuca

Monilaria chrysoleuca
Common names: string of pearls, pea mesemb (Eng.); ertjievygie (Afr.)
Family: Aizoaceae

An eye-catching succulent with unusual jointed stems that resemble a beaded necklace, and leaves that sparkle in sunlight....

28 / 08 / 2017 | R Powell | Compton Herbarium
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Mondia whitei

Mondia whitei flowers
Common names: White's ginger, tonic root (Eng.); mundondo, mudondo (Angola); mundondo, bondo, molo busio (Cissongo - Central African Republic); nlondo, kimbiolongwa
Family: Apocynaceae

Mondia whitei, White's ginger, is a truly versatile and magical African herb —  widely used medicinally and an excellent garden subject...

16 / 11 / 2009 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | Pretoria NBG
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Momordica cardiospermum

Green fruits and leaves
Common names: bitter gourd (Eng.); inshubaba (siSwati); ntwe (seTswana)
Family: Cucurbitaceae

This climber has a foetid smell, but makes up for it with showy orange-yellow flowers and large, fleshy, bulging orange-red ripe fruits that...

23 / 05 / 2005 | M Welman | Pretoria NBG
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Momordica balsamica

Flowers and green fruit
Common names: balsam pear (Eng.); laloentjie (Afr.); mohodu (Sotho); nkaka (Thonga); intshungu, intshungwana yehlathi (Zulu)
Family: Cucurbitaceae

This climber with bright green leaves bears striking orange to red spindle shaped ripe fruit....

20 / 12 / 2004 | M Welman | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Mitriostigma axillare

Mitriostigma axillare illustration
Common names: dwarf-loquat (Eng.); dwerglukwart (Afr.) South African National Tree List no. 689.2
Family: Rubiaceae

With its green glossy leaves, white star-shaped flowers, bright orange fruits and sweetly fragrant aroma, this eye-catching small tree is undoubtedly a...

03 / 05 / 2010 | Hugh Glen | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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