Plants of the Week

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E.g., 10/12/2024
E.g., 10/12/2024

Babiana rubrocyanea

Babiana rubrocyanea
Common names: blue-and-red babiana, wine-cup baboon-root, winecup babiana (Eng.); kelkiewynbobbejaantjie, rooibloubobbejaantjie (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Babiana rubrocyanea is perfect for those seeking a visually stunning and unique floral display. Its striking dark blue flowers with a red centre are truly...

05 / 02 / 2024 | Natasha Lombard | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Uvaria caffra

Uvaria caffra
Common names: small-fruited cluster-pear, small cluster pear, (Eng.), kleinvrugtrospeer, kleintrospeer (Afr.), idwaba (isiXhosa), inkonjane, umazwenda omnyama, umaz
Family: Annonaceae

...

29 / 01 / 2024 | Umpha Pharamela | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Melolobium candicans

Melolobium candicans
Common names: honey bush (Eng.), heuningbossie, stroopbossie, voëltjie-kan-nie-sit-nie (Afr.), sehlabane (Sesotho)
Family: Fabaceae

...

29 / 01 / 2024 | Lufuno Nenungwi | Free State NBG
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Struthiola dodecandra

Struthiola dodecandra
Common names: sweet gonna, pink featherhead (Eng.); soetgonna, katstertjie, heuningblommetjie (Afr.)
Family: Thymelaeaceae

Struthiola dodecandra is an erect shrublet with white or pink, night-scented flowers arranged in long spikes at the tips of the slender stems, which makes...

22 / 01 / 2024 | Caroline Marima | Harold Porter NBG
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Landolphia kirkii

Landolphia kirkii
Common names: sand apricot-vine, rubber vine (Eng.), sandrankappelkoos, melktou (Afr.), muvhungo, mukumululo (fruit) (Tshivenda), umbungwa, umkuzi (isiZulu)
Family: Apocynaceae

Named after its delicious fruit, the sand apricot-vine is a liane with many strong tendrils, glossy foliage, a branched inflorescence of small, scented,...

22 / 01 / 2024 | Nompumelelo Nkosi | Pretoria NBG
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Thunbergia atriplicifolia

Thunbergia atriplicifolia
Common names: Natal primrose (Eng.) isiphondo esincane (isiZulu)
Family: Acanthaceae

Thunbergia atriplicifolia is a softly hairy herbaceous shrublet with several stems that grow from a woody rootstock and beautiful creamy yellow flowers...

15 / 01 / 2024 | Mashudu Tshitereke | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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Ledebouria pilosa

Ledebouria pilosa
Common names: hairy-leaved African hyacinth (Eng.)
Family: Hyacinthaceae

The hairy-leaved African hyacinth is an attractive bulbous plant with broad, green, hairy leaves and a tall flower spike with small pink and white striped...

15 / 01 / 2024 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Hippobromus pauciflorus

Hippobromus pauciflorus
Common names: false horsewood, bastard horsewood (Eng.); valsperdepis, basterperdepis boom, basterperdepis (Afr.); isiphahluka, uqhume, umnungumabele, umfazothethay
Family: Sapindaceae

A small to medium sized, attractive, fast-growing tree with a dense rounded crown of shiny, aromatic leaves, clusters of small creamy white, scented flowers...

08 / 01 / 2024 | Winfred Velephi Ngwenya | Lowveld NBG
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Anthospermum spathulatum subsp. spathulatum

Anthospermum spathulatum
Common names: spoon flowerseed, spathulate anthospermum, jackal's tail (Eng.), jakkalsstert, skaapbos (Afr.)
Family: Rubiaceae

A dense, woody shrublet with small, needle-like leaves densely covering the stems to form an interesting arrangement of foliaged branches....

08 / 01 / 2024 | Thabang Makola | Karoo Desert NBG
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Ledebouria loedolffiae

Ledebouria loedolffiae in habitat
Common names: spotted cliff African hyacinth, spotted cliff squill (Eng.), kransbontblaar (Afr.)
Family: Hyacinthaceae

Ledebouria loedolffiae is a cluster-forming, evergreen, bulbous plant with mottled leaves in a rosette and small purplish flowers carried on an ascending...

01 / 01 / 2024 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Hermannia johanssenii

Hermannia johanssenii flowers
Common names: Johanssen’s hermannia (Eng.); heuningbos (Afr.)
Family: Malvaceae

A small woody shrub with alternate, lanceolate leaves that are covered with soft hairs and masses of small yellow flowers with five petals and a hairy...

01 / 01 / 2024 | Nonkululeko Ntshangase | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Scabiosa genus

Scabiosa genus
Common names: scabious, scabiosa, pincushion
Family: Dipsacaceae

...

25 / 12 / 2023 | Mulweli Maswoliedza | Compton Herbarium
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Erica fontana

Erica fontana, fresh flowers at the stem tip
Common names: fountain heath (Eng.); fonteinheide (Afr.)
Family: Ericaceae

Erica fontana produces white to light rosy pink tubular flowers, that become paler towards the base, and the flowers appear all year round. It is a rare...

25 / 12 / 2023 | Benjamin Festus | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Nerine gracilis

Nerine gracilis
Common names: delicate nerine
Family: Amaryllidaceae

Nerine gracilis is a dwarf, indigenous South African bulb, that can only be found in a few localities in rocky and damp Highveld Grassland. It has thread-like...

18 / 12 / 2023 | Ntsako Colins Chauke | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Amphithalea tomentosa

Amphithalea tomentosa, inflorescence
Common names: hairy amphithalea
Family: Fabaceae

Ampithalea tomentosa is a striking plant found in Lowland Fynbos, with eye-catching, silvery foliage and yellow blossoms almost hidden by the hairy calyx,...

18 / 12 / 2023 | Naomi Mdayi | Millennium Seed Bank Partnership
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Zaluzianskya villosa

Zaluzianskya villosa
Common names: downy drumsticks (Eng.); verfblommetjie (Afr.)
Family: Scrophulariaceae

These small, dainty, white to mauve flowered annuals can be seen in spring and early summer in the Western Cape of South Africa. Unlike Zaluzianskya capensis,...

11 / 12 / 2023 | Karen Wall | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Aristea spiralis

A clump of Aristea spiralis
Common names: star-eyed aristea, pale capeblue (Eng.)
Family: Iridaceae

Clumps of Aristea spiralis make a striking display, the large white to pale blue flowers with purple centres are very attractive and last throughout the...

11 / 12 / 2023 | Natasha Lombard | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Encephalartos dolomiticus

Encephalartos dolomiticus
Common names: Wolkberg cycad (Eng.); Wolkberg-broodboom (Afr.)
Family: Zamiaceae

The Wolkberg cycad is an extraordinarily beautiful species characterized by its striking blue colour. Adding to its attraction is the tendency to bear...

04 / 12 / 2023 | Lungisani Zondi | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Disperis woodii

Disperis woodii in flower
Common names: horned kappie, Wood’s disperis (Eng.); horingmoederkappie (Afr.)
Family: Orchidaceae

Disperis woodii is a tiny terrestrial orchid, with a cluster of leaves at the base and just one stem that produces a single flower with a long pointed...

04 / 12 / 2023 | Monde Zulu | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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Portulacaria fruticulosa

Portulacaria fruticulosa in flower
Common names: rose porkbush (Eng.), suikerkanna, roos-wolftoon (Afr.)
Family: Didiereaceae

Portulacaria fruticulosa is an ascending, much-branched shrub about 700 mm tall, with slender reddish-brown branches less than 1 mm in diameter at the...

27 / 11 / 2023 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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