Plants of the Week

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Pachycarpus acidostelma

Pachycarpus acidostelma
Common names: Highflats pachycarpus
Family: Apocynaceae

Recognized by its creamy to pale yellow, saucer-shaped flowers, the elusive Pachycarpus acidostelma remains one of South Africa’s hidden gems.Fig....

27 / 12 / 2021 | Kaveesha Naicker | CREW
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Pachycarpus campanulatus

Pachycarpus campanulatus var. campanulatus showing the inflorescence with pendent flowers.
Common names: cluster bells, toad plant, fairy bell pachycarpus, thick-fruit (Eng.); trosklokkies (Afr.); ishongwe (isiZulu).
Family: Apocynaceae

Pachycarpus campanulatus is a showy plant with large, hanging, bell-shaped flowers of up to 5 per umbel and exuding milky latex, like most plants in the...

13 / 08 / 2018 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Pachycarpus natalensis

Pachycarpus natalensis
Common names: Natal thick-fruit, Natal pachycarpus (Eng.); ishongwe elibomvu elikhulu (isiZulu)
Family: Apocynaceae

Pachycarpus natalensis is one of many amazingly beautiful indigenous plants, which is almost never cultivated. This is due to the short span of its flowering,...

04 / 12 / 2017 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Pachycarpus schinzianus

Flowers of P.schinzianus
Common names: cream cups (Eng.); bitterwortel (Afr.)
Family: Apocynaceae

In spring and summer Pachycarpus schinzianus and Xysmalobium undulatum are the two largest and most readily distinguished asclepiads in the grasslands...

21 / 01 / 2008 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Pachypodium

Pachypodium species
Common names: P. baronii var. windsorii : none; P. * bispinosum : bobbejaankos, kragman, sterkman, kamoa (Afr.); P. densiflorum var. densiflorum, P. geayi, P. horom
Family: Apocynaceae

Pachypodiums are caudiciform succulents and many of the species produce spectacular flowers. They exhibit a wide range of bizarre growth forms, from bottle-,...

10 / 12 / 2007 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Pachypodium bispinosum

Pachypodium bispinosum flowers. Photo Jenny Potgieter
Common names: bell-flower thick-foot (English), bobbejaankos, kafferkambroo, kragman, sterkman, dikvoet (Afrikaans)
Family: Apocynaceae

A spiny succulent plant that shows off with bell-shaped, purple to pink, sometimes white flowers in spring and early summer....

20 / 02 / 2023 | Sisipho Mqungguthu | Karoo Desert NBG
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Pachypodium namaquanum

Pachypodium namaquanum
Common names: elephant's trunk (Eng.); halfmens (Afr.)
Family: Apocynaceae

Pachypodium namaquanum must rate as the most sought-after and popular of all large succulents from the arid Northern Cape and southern Namibia,...

04 / 06 / 2007 | Olivia Pekeur | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Pachypodium saundersii

Pachypodium saundersii
Common names: kudu lily, rathbonia (Eng.); koedoelelie (Afr.); isihlehle, insema-yamatshe (isiZulu); sikhubakhuba, ligubaguba (siSwati).
Family: Apocynaceae

A low succulent shrub with a large tuberous stem up to 1 m in diameter, mostly above ground and often irregularly shaped, few spiny branches and showy...

20 / 05 / 2024 | Khanyisile Nkosi | Pretoria NBG
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Pachypodium succulentum

Pachypodium succulentum
Common names: star-flower thick-foot, porcupine-kambroo (Eng.); bergkambroo, bobbejaankambroo, bobbejaankos, ystervarkkambroo, ystervarkkos, dikvoet (Afr.)
Family: Apocynaceae

A slow-growing shrublet characterized by its unusual thickened, underground, water-storing, tuberous stem, which helps the plant to survive during drought...

07 / 01 / 2019 | Lufuno Nenungwi | Free State NBG
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Panicum maximum

Panicum maximum
Common names: Guinea grass (Eng. ); blousaad soetgras (Afr.)
Family: Poaceae

This tufted grass species is highly palatable and attracts many seed-eating birds to the garden. It is regarded as the most valuable fodder plant and is...

21 / 11 / 2005 | Linette Ferreira | Pretoria NBG
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Papaver aculeatum

Papaver aculeatum flower. Photo SAplants
Common names: bristle poppy, orange poppy (Eng.); doringpapawer, koringpapawer, wildepapawer (Afr.); sehlohlo (South Sotho)
Family: Papaveraceae

Papaver aculeatum is an attractive, orange- or pinkish-orange-flowered annual, and the only poppy endemic to the southern hemisphere. It makes an attractive...

22 / 07 / 2019 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Pappea capensis

Pappea capensis fruit
Common names: jacket plum, Indaba tree, bushveld cherry (Eng.); doppruim (Afr.); umqhokwane, umvuna, indaba (Zulu); ilitye, umgqalutye (Xhosa); mongatane, mopsinyug
Family: Sapindaceae

The red fruit of this tree is a tasty treat for humans and a firm favourite with birds and animals. A fine oil is extracted from the seeds. The jacket...

07 / 06 / 2004 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Paranomus bracteolaris

Paranomus bracteolaris
Common names: Bokkeveld sceptre, smooth-leaved tree-sceptre (Eng.); bokkeveld-septerboom, afveebos, balbyterbos, haakbos, heuningbos, kloofbesem, perdebos, sousbos,
Family: Proteaceae

One of the common sceptres, it produces a single leaf form, a dissected leaf, over the entire plant, and purple to pink flowers with a faint sweet scent...

10 / 12 / 2018 | Mashudu Nndanduleni | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Paranomus dregei

Paranomus dregei
Common names: scented sceptre (Eng.); parfuumsepter (Afr.)
Family: Proteaceae

A splendid shrub, with scented flowers that attract many insects, and very much catches the eye with its reddish involucral bracts, creamy flowers and...

28 / 06 / 2021 | Mashudu Nndanduleni | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Paranomus longicaulis

Paranomus longicaulis
Common names: woolly sceptre, exploding baked apple (Eng.); poppiesbos (Afr.)
Family: Proteaceae

Densely white-woolly, pink and brown flowerheads, forming a short bottlebrush on a long, flowering branch, in spring to summer, with unusual foliage, bearing...

28 / 05 / 2018 | Mashudu Nndanduleni | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Paranomus reflexus

Paranomus reflexus flowerheads
Common names: Van Staden's sceptre
Family: Proteaceae

Paranomus reflexus is an unusual, decorative fynbos shrub with showy winter flowers; it is probably the best known paranomus but is not often seen...

28 / 06 / 2010 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Paranomus sceptrum-gustavianus

Flower head
Common names: King Gustave's sceptre, bottlebrush, white sceptre, sceptre-like paranomus (Eng.); perdebos, septerpluimbos (Afr.)
Family: Proteaceae

This is a favourite among the Paranomus with showy, sweetly scented flowers and attractive foliage....

23 / 06 / 2014 | Nosiphelele Patricia Mapukata | Harold Porter NBG
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Parinari capensis subsp. capensis

Parinari capensis subsp. capensis
Common names: dwarf mobola-plum, sand apple (Eng.); sandappeltjie, bosappeltjie, gruisappeltjie, grysappeltjie, witappeltjie (Afr.); murunda (Tshivenda), mobolo-oa-
Family: Chrysobalanaceae

A dwarf creeping tree of the South African grassland, Parinari capensis subsp. capensis, captivates with its diminutive stature and remarkable adaptability....

01 / 04 / 2024 | Mpho Mathalauga | Pretoria NBG
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Parinari curatellifolia

Parinari curatellifolia tree
Common names: mobola-plum, cork tree, hissing tree (Eng.); grysappel, bosappel (Afr.); mmola (N. Sotho); mbulwa (Tsonga); mobola (Tswana); muvhula (Venda)
Family: Chrysobalanaceae

This attractive shade-providing tree is a prominent aspect in its environment, and it is no surprise that a tribute to the late Dr David Livingstone (a...

22 / 09 / 2008 | Hugh Glen | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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Passerina corymbosa

Flowers
Common names: gonna bush (Eng.); gonnabos, bakkerbos (Afr.)
Family: Thymelaeaceae

Passerina corymbosa, a medium to tall shrub covered in masses of small creamy flowers, is fast-growing and would be a welcome addition to any fynbos...

27 / 11 / 2006 | Roger Oliver | Kirstenbosch NBG
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