Plants of the Week

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E.g., 15/01/2025
E.g., 15/01/2025

Gladiolus venustus

Gladiolus venustus
Common names: bright bonnet, purple kalkoentjie (Eng.); kalkoentjie, perskalkoentjie, haasblom, perdelelie, bontpatryspypie (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Gladiolus venustus is a showy species, with fragrant, purple or pink and yellow flowers in spring, best suited for the arid regions of the winter-rainfall...

01 / 02 / 2021 | Shireen Harris | Karoo Desert NBG
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Gymnosporia senegalensis

Gymnosporia senegalensis
Common names: red spikethorn, confetti spikethorn (Eng.); bloupendoring, rooipendoring (Afr.); sephatho, mophatho (Sepedi); sihlangu lesimhlophe (siSwati); ubuhlang
Family: Celastraceae

A bright, white-flowered, sweet-scented indigenous shrub, often with wine-red branches. Its roots and leaves are used in traditional medicine to treat...

25 / 01 / 2021 | M.S. Mothogoane | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Aloe omavandae

Aloe omavandae
Common names: Omavanda aloe (Eng.); omavanda-aalwyn (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Aloe omavandae is a rare, medium-sized, cliff-hanger aloe, with a drooping rosette of faintly spotted, greyish green leaves and a branched, rarely simple...

25 / 01 / 2021 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Aloe pavelkae

Aloe pavelkae
Common names: Hunsberg aloe (Eng.); hunsberg-aalwyn (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Aloe pavelkae is a rare, medium-sized, cliff-dwelling aloe, with drooping rosettes of green leaves. It is cluster-forming, with the stems becoming pendent,...

18 / 01 / 2021 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Aloe framesii

Aloe framesii
Common names: Strandveld speckled aloe (Eng.); strandveld gespikkelde-aalwyn (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

This attractive aloe will enhance contrast in any garden setup with its colourful flowers and astonishing leaves, which are covered with many spots and...

18 / 01 / 2021 | Ricardo Riddles | Karoo Desert NBG
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Aloe dabenorisana

Aloe dabenorisana
Common names: Dabenoris aloe, Pella aloe (Eng.); pella-aalwyn (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Aloe dabenorisana is a rare, medium-sized, cluster-forming, cliff-dwelling aloe, up to 300 mm high, with short, sometimes drooping stems and leaves in...

11 / 01 / 2021 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Holothrix randii

Holothrix randii
Common names: tassel orchid (Eng.)
Family: Orchidaceae

This orchid is easier to spot among the grasses in the morning, because the flowers look shiny and silver from a distance. A closer look at the front of...

11 / 01 / 2021 | Fergy Nkadimeng | Millennium Seed Bank Partnership
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Aloe meyeri

Aloe meyeri
Common names: Rosyntjiesberg aloe (Eng.); rosyntjiesberg-aalwyn (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

A rare, small, cliff-dwelling aloe with drooping rosettes of greyish green leaves and simple inflorescences of small, tubular, orange-red flowers with...

04 / 01 / 2021 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Zaluzianskya microsiphon

Zaluzianskya microsiphon
Common names: two-lipped drumsticks (Eng.); malthungthung (Southern Sotho)
Family: Scrophulariaceae

A day-flowering species with strongly zygomorphic, unscented flowers....

04 / 01 / 2021 | Xichavo Mathebula | Compton Herbarium
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Plumbago zeylanica

Plumbago zeylanica
Common names: wild white leadwort, Ceylon plumbago (Eng.); swartwaterbossie (Afr.)
Family: Plumbaginaceae

Plumbago zeylanica is a gorgeous, eye-catching shrub that adds intrigue into any garden; it is covered with pretty trusses of small white or rarely pale...

28 / 12 / 2020 | Keenan Williams | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Erythrophleum lasianthum

Erythrophleum lasianthum
Common names: Maputaland ordeal tree, Swazi ordeal tree, sasswood (Eng.); maputalandoordeelboom, swazi-oordeelboom (Afr.); umbhemise, umhlakazane, umkhwangu (isiZul
Family: Fabaceae

A medium to large tree with glossy, dark green foliage and honey-scented flowers in spring and early summer, followed by woody pods that remain on the...

28 / 12 / 2020 | Mmapitsi Malebye | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Ledebouria atrobrunnea

Ledebouria atrobrunnea
Common names: dark brown African hyacinth (Eng.)
Family: Hyacinthaceae

This dwarf, range-restricted African hyacinth with erect leaves and characteristic dark brown persistent leaf bases, is an interesting and attractive plant...

21 / 12 / 2020 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Aloe gerstneri

Aloe gerstneri
Common names: gerstner’s aloe (Eng.); isihlabana (Zul.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

The regal Aloe gerstneri stands tall, with an orange ombre inflorescence, in its natural habitat, the rocky grasslands. ...

21 / 12 / 2020 | Kaveesha Naicker | CREW
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Leonotis ocymifolia

Leonotis ocymifolia
Common names: rock lion's paw, minaret flower (Eng.); klipdagga, wildedagga (Afr.)
Family: Lamiaceae

Leonotis ocymifolia, the lesser known relative to the well-known Leonotis leonurus, is in many ways as worthy of recognition, not only for its usefulness,...

14 / 12 / 2020 | Karen Wall | Harold Porter NBG
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Craibia brownii

Craibia brownii
Common names: None in South Africa
Family: Fabaceae

An eye-catching rounded tree, covered with white to creamy pink, strongly scented flowers in spring and early summer, that will take a starring role in...

14 / 12 / 2020 | Winfred Velephi Ngwenya | Lowveld NBG
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Erica unicolor subsp. georgensis

Erica unicolor subsp. georgensis
Common names: George onecolour heath (Eng.)
Family: Ericaceae

This shrubby heath produces clusters of red, tubular flowers with light yellow tips, which make it very eye-catching when reaching its flowering peak in...

07 / 12 / 2020 | Benjamin Festus | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Haemanthus humilis subsp. hirsutus

Haemanthus humilis subsp. hirsutus
Common names: Rabbit’s ears (Eng.); bobbejaanoor, velskoenblaar (Afr.); tsebe ea phofu, sekitla (Sesotho)
Family: Amaryllidaceae

One of the best available bulbous plants to grow in those rocky, shady spots, the rabbit’s ears knows how to put on a show. Whether it is in fruit,...

07 / 12 / 2020 | Ndiyafhi Muthuhadini | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Achyranthemum sordescens

Achyranthemum sordescens
Common names: dune chaff-flower
Family: Asteraceae

A very attractive, clump-forming everlasting, with silky, recurved leaves and stunning yellow flowerheads. ...

30 / 11 / 2020 | Vathiswa Zikishe | CREW
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Cineraria geifolia

Cineraria geifolia
Common names: geum-leaved cineraria
Family: Asteraceae

A cheery, floriferous, spring-flowering ground cover, widespread from the coastal shores to higher altitudes inland and it is easy to grow, making it a...

30 / 11 / 2020 | Roger Oliver | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Orthanthera jasminiflora

Orthanthera jasminiflora
Common names: jasmine creeper, star jasmine (Eng.); sandmelktou, sandmelk, moerwortel, moerworteltjie (Afr.); rapologwane (Setswana); kamongamba (Hmbukushu); mosamo
Family: Apocynaceae

The relatively unknown small genus, Orthanthera consists of six species: five in Africa and one from India, Pakistan and Nepal. It is unknown whether plants...

23 / 11 / 2020 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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