Plants of the Week

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E.g., 13/10/2024
E.g., 13/10/2024

Empodium veratrifolium

Star-shaped flower
Common names: West Coast star (Eng.); breëblaar sterretjie; Weskus sterretjie (Afr.)
Family: Hypoxidaceae

The bright yellow West Coast star appears after the first good autumn rains, at a time when few other geophytes are in flower. It is easily grown in pots,...

09 / 10 / 2023 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Phaulopsis imbricata

Phaulopsis imbricata
Common names: sticky acanth (Eng.); umhlonyane (isiZulu); papleaf (The Gambia), salt of the cow (Senegal)
Family: Acanthaceae

Phaulopsis imbricata is a bushy, perennial herbaceous plant, with small white flowers in short spikes that are sticky to the touch. Easy to grow, it is...

09 / 10 / 2023 | Bongekile Ndlovu | Pretoria NBG
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Searsia tomentosa

Searsia tomentosa, male flowers.
Common names: bicoloured currant, furry currant, wild currant, current crowberry (Eng), korentebos, korentetaaibos (Afr.) umhlakothi, inhlokoshiyane (isiZulu).
Family: Anacardiaceae

Searsia tomentosa is an attractive, bushy shrub to small tree with multi-coloured foliage, that is commonly known as bicoloured currant. It produces flowers...

02 / 10 / 2023 | Luyanda Bhengu | Free State NBG
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Merwilla plumbea subsp. kraussii

A clump of Merwilla plumbea subsp. kraussii in flower
Common names: dwarf blue squill, wild squill, dwarf scilla (Eng.); kleinblouslangkop, kleinblouberglelie (Afr.); ichitha, inguduza (isiZulu)
Family: Hyacinthaceae

Falling under one of the most complicated genera, Merwilla plumbea subsp. kraussii, small as it is, sure has a lot of potential to be a rewarding pot plant...

02 / 10 / 2023 | Dineo Dibakwane | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Sesamum saxicola

Sesamum saxicola
Common names: rock foxglove (Eng.); rotsvingerhoedblom (Afr.)
Family: Pedaliaceae

With the Soutpansberg in the extreme north eastern Venda and Kruger National Park being its only home, Sesamum saxicola grows in sandstone crevices, overhanging...

25 / 09 / 2023 | Ntsakisi Masia | Millennium Seed Bank Partnership
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Erica cubica var. cubica

Erica cubica
Common names: cube heath (Eng.) kubusheide (Afr.)
Family: Ericaceae

Erica cubica displays a mass of deep pink flowers in early summer....

25 / 09 / 2023 | Benjamin Festus | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Dicerocaryum senecioides

Common names: devil’s thorn, boot protectors, stud plant (Eng.); elandsdoring (Afr.); museto (Tshivenda)
Family: Pedaliaceae

Dicerocaryum senecioides is now known as Sesamum senecioides ...

21 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Dicerocaryum eriocarpum

Common names: devil’s thorn (Eng.); beesdubbeltjie, duiwelsdoring, seepbos (Afr.); intekelane (Ndebele); makanagwe (Tswana)
Family: Pedaliaceae

Dicerocaryum eriocarpum is now known as Sesamum eriocarpum ...

21 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Ceratotheca saxicola

Common names: rock foxglove (Eng.); rotsvingerhoedblom (Afr.)
Family: Pedaliaceae

Ceratotheca saxicola is now known as Sesamum saxicola ...

21 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Sesamum trilobum

Sesamum trilobum growing in Kirstenbosch
Common names: wild foxglove, African foxglove, false foxglove (Eng.); vingerhoedblom, wildevingerhoedjie (Afr.); ludvonca, udonqa (SiSwati); udonqa, undoncalwabathw
Family: Pedaliaceae

Flowering during the warm summer and into autumn, this tall elegant annual adds a cool and lush feeling to the garden. In nature they are commonly found...

21 / 09 / 2023 | Liesl Van der Walt | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Astroloba subg. Poellnitzia

Family: Asphodelaceae

This subgenus comprises a single species....

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Vastora

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are glossy. Due to their relatively small divergence angle, the leaves form five ranks that are either vertical...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Inflata

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are matt and unadorned. The inflorescence is usually unbranched, and the flowers have somewhat inflated perianth...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Intercedens

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are matt. Their flowers have dull-coloured perianth tubes and cream-coloured lobes. The two species co-occur,...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Astroloba

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are often tuberculed, with one margin of each leaf usually losing its identity near the leaf apex. The relatively...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Astroloba genus

Astroloba spirella in a nurse plant east of Ladismith
Common names: astrolobas, starlobes (Eng.); astrolobas, kleinaalwyne, koedoekos, steekaalwyntjies (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Astrolobas are aloes in the miniature and well adapted to their arid karroid environments. They form clusters of stems that are densely packed with small,...

18 / 09 / 2023 | Ronell R. Klopper | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Hexalobus monopetalus

Ripe fruit of Hexalobus monopetalus
Common names: shakama plum, baboon’s breakfast, wild custard apple (Eng.), bastersuikerappel, shakamapruim (Afr.), muhuhuma (Tshivenda), moheteka, mowedika (North
Family: Annonaceae

...

18 / 09 / 2023 | Sithi Ngamlana | Pretoria NBG
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Euphorbia cupularis

Euphorbia cupularis leaves.  Photo Geoff Nichols
Common names: dead-man’s tree, crying tree (Eng.); dooiemansboom, gifboom (Afr.); umdlebe, umdletshane (isiZulu); sidlejane (isiSwati); mulamba-noni (Tshivenda)
Family: Euphorbiaceae

Euphorbia cupularis is a compact succulent shrub or small tree characterized by multiple stems and a rounded growth habit. Its striking emerald-green foliage...

11 / 09 / 2023 | Nthabiseng Lucia Masetla | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Pterocelastrus rostratus

Pterocelastrus rostratus
Common names: red cherrywood, beaked pterocelastrus, red candlewood (Eng.); rooikershout, kersiehout (Afr.); ugobandlovu, usahlulamanye (Zulu); itywina (Xhosa)
Family: Celastraceae

A graceful evergreen tree, or shrub, with a slender stem, a bushy crown and sweet-scented flowers in summer followed by distinctive spiky, orange to reddish-brown...

11 / 09 / 2023 | Loretta Floors | Harold Porter NBG
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Roepera flexuosa

Roepera flexuosa
Common names: thin twinleaf (Eng.); spekbossie, spekbroodbossie, maerbossie, skilpadbos, vyfpondbos (Afr.)
Family: Zygophyllaceae

A bright-flowering and hardy small shrub for the fynbos, succulent or semi-succulent garden alike....

04 / 09 / 2023 | Roger Oliver | Kirstenbosch NBG
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