Plants of the Week

Browse through all previous entries of Plants Of The Week

  • Sort by date added
  • Sort Alphabetically
Go to Plants of the Week Advanced Search
E.g., 13/12/2024
E.g., 13/12/2024

Cyrtanthus ventricosus

Flowers. Photo Colin Paterson Jones
Common names: fire lily; brandlelie (Afrikaans)
Family: Amaryllidaceae

This plant, a true fire lily, defies the elements by producing its beautiful, salmon to scarlet blooms just nine days after the seemingly destructive effects...

07 / 10 / 2013 | D Snijman | Compton Herbarium
Read More

Coleus grandidentatus

Coleus grandidentatus
Common names: big-teeth coleus, scented-leaf coleus (Eng.); groottandsalie (Afr.)
Family: Lamiaceae

...

19 / 12 / 2011 | Kyle Smith | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Coleus neochilus

Coleus neochilus
Common names: smelly coleus, blue coleus, lobster flower (Eng.); rotstuinsalie (Afr.)
Family: Lamiaceae

This is a hardy, versatile, aromatic herbaceous perennial, which forms an attractive groundcover even when the plant is not in flower and is suitable both...

31 / 05 / 2004 | T Mukoma | Lowveld NBG
Read More

Coleus hadiensis

Coleus hadiensis inflorescence
Common names: hairy coleus (Eng.); harigesalie (Afr.); ilozane (isiXhosa); lehlati, imbozisa (Zulu)
Family: Lamiaceae

An attractive perennial shrub, with decorative aromatic foliage, suitable for planting in humid, moist and lightly shaded areas in small gardens....

02 / 06 / 2014 | Mpendulo Gabayi | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Coleus madagascariensis

Coleus madascariensis 'Lynne'
Common names: thicket coleus, Madagascar coleus, candle plant (Eng.); ruigtemuishondblaar, Madagaskarmuishondblaar (Afr.); iboza lehlathi, ilozane (isiZulu)
Family: Lamiaceae

A robust, water-wise and attractive garden plant that will reliably provide colour in the garden....

09 / 06 / 2014 | Adam Harrower | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Coleus kirkii

Coleus kirkii
Common names: prickly sage, blue soldier sage (Eng.); stekelsalie (Afr.); umvuthuza, uhlalawane (Zulu)
Family: Lamiaceae

A beautiful perennial with two-tone, spiky, pale blue and mauve flowerheads in late summer to autumn; a good choice for the mixed border if you live in...

29 / 03 / 2004 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Coleus livingstonei

Coleus livingstonei
Common names: hedgehog sage, large hedgehog flower, prickly sage, blue boys, nettle-leaf pycnostachys, dark blue pycnostachys (Eng.); ystervarksalie, groot ystervar
Family: Lamiaceae

 An evergreen, aromatic, perennial, with beautiful spikes of blue flowers, which bloom very late in autumn. The species is a good choice for an informal...

16 / 03 / 2009 | Mandisa Kondlo | Walter Sisulu NBG
Read More

Caputia tomentosa

Caputia tomentosa growing in the Conservatory at Kistenbosch
Common names: woolly caputia, tinderbush (Eng.); tontelbossie, tontelbos, tonteldoos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

A very striking shrublet with beautiful silvery white, cylindrical succulent leaves and yellow discoid-daisy flowerheads in late summer and autumn. It...

13 / 04 / 2023 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Caputia oribiensis

Caputia oribiensis
Common names: Oribi Gorge caputia (Eng.); Oribi-tontelbos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

Caputia oribiensis is an ascending, sparsely branched, drought tolerant, succulent shrublet, belonging to the daisy family (Asteraceae), with showy,...

11 / 08 / 2014 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Caputia pyramidata

Plant in flower
Common names: tall caputia (Eng.); groot-tontelbos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

Caputia pyramidata is a drought-tolerant succulent-leaved shrub, endemic to the Albany Thicket vegetation in the Eastern Cape. It has showy, ascending...

14 / 07 / 2014 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Caputia scaposa

Flowers of Caputia scaposa var.scaposa
Common names: small caputia (Eng.); kleintontelbos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

This is a short, drought tolerant, succulent shrublet, belonging to the daisy family (Asteraceae), with showy, spreading leaves in a central rosette and...

15 / 09 / 2014 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Clivia mirabilis

Clivia mirabilis
Common names: miracle clivia
Family: Amaryllidaceae

The discovery in the Nieuwoudtville area of the Northern Cape of a most unusual new Clivia species, Clivia mirabilis, caused much excitement in the botanical...

20 / 05 / 2002 | Nicky Malcolm | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Colchicum

Colchicum asteroides
Common names: cup and a saucer, men-in-a-boat (Eng.); bobbejaanskoen (Afr.)
Family: Colchicaceae

Members of the genus Colchicum are low, short-stemmed to stemless perennials with leaves spreading on the ground. The most noticeable characteristic of...

16 / 01 / 2006 | E T Rampho | National Herbarium Pretoria
Read More

Cotula turbinata

Plant in flower-white form
Common names: bachelor buttons, funnel weed (Eng.); ganskos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

Cotula turbinata is a pretty, early flowering annual that can be seen popping up in grassy patches along sidewalks and other moist open places throughout...

06 / 10 / 2014 | A Jakoet | Compton Herbarium
Read More

Cyrtanthus

Cyrtanthus elatus
Common names: fire lily (Eng.); brandlelie, vuurlelie (Afr.)
Family: Amaryllidaceae

Cyrtanthus is an African genus of bulbous plants, comprising an extraordinary range of attractive flower forms, in a wide range of colours. Many species...

19 / 07 / 2021 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Cotula duckittiae

Bright orange flowers
Common names: Bokbaai buttons
Family: Asteraceae

This adorable orange flowered annual normally heralds the beginning of spring when it starts flowering in September....

03 / 11 / 2014 | Roger Oliver | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Crassula orbicularis

Crassula orbicularis leaves
Common names: stonecrop (Eng.); klipblom (Afr.); umadinsane (isiZulu)
Family: Crassulaceae

Crassula orbicularis is an ideal plant for any shade garden. Its wonderful appearance and the ease at which it may be grown, make it a pleasure for both...

22 / 12 / 2014 | James Deacon | Kirstenbosch NBG
Read More

Chrysocoma coma-aurea

Bright yellow flowerheads and leaves
Common names: golden heads, golden bitter bush, golden cowcud (Eng.); bitterbos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

This species is a showy shrub of fast growth that may be planted close together to form a good border plant, along the edges of a flower bed....

29 / 12 / 2014 | Papama Tsoanyane | Harold Porter NBG
Read More

Coleotrype natalensis

Coleotrype natalensis showing leaves and flower
Common names: none recorded
Family: Commelinaceae

The genus Coleotrype is characterised by its extremely contracted inflorescences, with each unit being subtended by a relatively large bract, and the petals...

26 / 01 / 2015 | Aluwani Tshiila | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
Read More

Crocosmia aurea

Crocosmia aurea
Common names: falling stars, valentine flower, montbretia (Eng.); valentynsblom (Afr.); umlunge, udwendweni (Zulu)
Family: Iridaceae

This is a very attractive garden plant with a number of bright orange flowers in a full spike at the end of the flower stalk. The tall stalks make it desirable...

25 / 08 / 2003 | Mhlonishwa D Dlamini | Walter Sisulu NBG
Read More