Plants of the Week

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E.g., 28/11/2024
E.g., 28/11/2024

Caesalpinia bracteata

Caesalpinia bracteata
Common names: Gariep plume-flower (Eng.); Gariep pronkstert (Afr.)
Family: Fabaceae

Caesalpinia bracteata represents a fairly recent discovery. It is a rare, thorny shrub with beautiful pink flowers, endemic to the dry desert of the lower...

30 / 01 / 2017 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Jasminum angulare

Jasminum angulare
Common names: wild jasmine (Eng.); wildejasmyn (Afr.); umalalala (Zulu)
Family: Oleaceae

An evergreen creeper or rambling shrub, with fragrant white flowers in summer; a good garden plant or pot plant for full sun to light shade....

23 / 01 / 2017 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Ledebouria marginata

Ledebouria marginata. Verloren Valei.
Common names: tough-leaved African hyacinth
Family: Hyacinthaceae

An attractive Ledebouria with erect, fibrous leaves and large bulb, often locally common with regional variations; it occurs over a wide area of the eastern...

23 / 01 / 2017 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Fanninia caloglossa

Fanninia caloglossa inflorescence showing the intriguing flowers (Photo Cameron McMaster)
Common names: Fannin’s beauty
Family: Apocynaceae

This monotypic genus (containing only one species) and despite its small stature, is very pretty. It was mentioned by the well-known botanist N.E. Brown,...

16 / 01 / 2017 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Pelargonium tricolor

Pelargonium tricolor
Common names: three-colour storksbill, three-colour pelargonium (Eng.); gesiggiemalva (Afr.)
Family: Geraniaceae

A fascinating, low-growing, floriferous shrublet that displays some of the most amazing natural variation of flower colour forms and shapes....

16 / 01 / 2017 | Roger Oliver | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Entada rheedii

Entada rheedii has fragrant flowers in spikes up to 230mm long (Photo Geoff Nichols)
Common names: giant sea bean, African dream herb, snuff box (Eng.); reuseseeboontjie, seeboontjie, boonbobbejaantou (Afr.); inkwindi, intindile, umbhone (isiZulu)
Family: Fabaceae

A perennial climbing vine that is used by African traditional healers to induce vivid dreams that enable them to communicate efficiently with their ancestors....

09 / 01 / 2017 | Lerato Hoveka | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Asparagus africanus

Asparagus africanus
Common names: bush asparagus, African asparagus, wild asparagus, climbing asparagus fern, ornamental asparagus, sparrow grass (Eng.); haakdoring, katdoring, wag-’
Family: Asparagaceae

A perennial climber or sub-shrub with woody, prickly, scrambling stems, fern-like foliage, clusters of beautiful small, white, sweetly scented flowers...

09 / 01 / 2017 | Nomama Mei | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Cordylogyne globosa

Cordylogyne globosa, rounded flowerhead
Common names: none
Family: Apocynaceae

Cordylogyne globosa grows from a perennial tuber that looks somewhat like a white carrot, into long, slender stems and leaves, hidden amongst other tall...

02 / 01 / 2017 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Thespesia acutiloba

Thespesia acutiloba, lemon yellow hibiscus-like flowers in late summer. (Photo Geoff Nichols)
Common names: small-leaved portia tree, wild tulip tree, small-leaved tulip tree (Eng.); kleinblaarportiaboom, kleinblaartulpboom, wildetulpboom (Afr.); umthombe (i
Family: Malvaceae

An attractive tree with handsome foliage, showy lemon-yellow flowers in summer and decorative red fruits. This tree is not well known among the general...

02 / 01 / 2017 | Benjamin Festus | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Pelargonium rapaceum

Pelargonium rapaceum, unusual pea-flower-like flowers
Common names: mountain potato (Eng.); bergpatat, bergaartappel, norra, norretjie (Afr.); !norra (Nama)
Family: Geraniaceae

This hardy geophytic pelargonium has attractive foliage, unusual flowers and makes an ideal plant for waterwise gardens in winter rainfall areas....

26 / 12 / 2016 | Shireen Harris | Karoo Desert NBG
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Othonna triplinervia

Othonna triplinervia
Common names: three-veined othonna
Family: Asteraceae

A succulent shrub that flourishes in heavy, winter rainfall areas. Its rounded growth form and velvety foliage, makes this plant a desirable specimen for...

26 / 12 / 2016 | Jermaine Christoffels | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Brachylaena elliptica

Brachylaena elliptica flowers are visited by bees (Geoff Nichols)
Common names: bitterleaf, bitterleaved silver-oak, fire-sticks (Eng.); bitterblaar, suurbos (Afr); isiduli; isagqeba, umphahla (IsiXhosa); isiduli-ehlathi, igqeba-e
Family: Asteraceae

This is an attractive small tree or large shrub with interesting aromatic, dark green foliage with greyish silver undersides....

19 / 12 / 2016 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Aloe succotrina

Aloe succotrina, growing in Kirstenbosch
Common names: fynbos aloe, mountain aloe (Eng.); bergaalwyn (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Growing high up on the cliff faces and rocky outcrops in the mountains of the Western Cape, this is one of only a few fynbos aloes. It is an attractive...

19 / 12 / 2016 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Harold Porter NBG
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Barleria saxatilis

Barleria saxatilis, light mauve flowers with a yellow corolla tube
Common names: rock bush violet (Eng.); rotsbosviooltjie (Afr.)
Family: Acanthaceae

A late summer, early autumn splash of colour for a sunny garden.   ...

12 / 12 / 2016 | Willem Froneman | Lowveld NBG
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Protea longifolia

Protea longifolia
Common names: long-leaf sugarbush, long-leaf protea (Eng.); langblaarsuikerbos (Afr.)
Family: Proteaceae

A fast-growing protea, which is easily recognized by its extended central mass of flowers with black-bearded tips, and various flower colours of yellow-green,...

12 / 12 / 2016 | Mashudu Nndanduleni | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Searsia burchellii

Searsia burchellii, in fruit
Common names: Karoo kunibush (Eng.); karookoeniebos (Afr.); mokhoamphiri, tshilabele (Sesotho); motshôtlhô (Tswana)
Family: Anacardiaceae

A much-branched, evergreen shrub or small tree with small, glossy, waxy leaves, common in the dry karroid regions of southern Africa, that is frost hardy...

05 / 12 / 2016 | Stemmer Ngalo | Free State NBG
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Gymnanthemum myrianthum

Gymnanthemum myrianthum flower head
Common names: blue bitter-tea, eared bitter-tea, blue vernonia, eared vernonia, poison tree-vernonia, wild lilac (Eng.); bloubittertee, bosbloutee (Afr.); uhluhlung
Family: Asteraceae

An unusual, striking, robust shrub or small tree that is suddenly beautiful when in flower in late autumn, with eye-catching clumps of mauve to white to...

05 / 12 / 2016 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Ledebouria minima

Ledebouria minima
Common names: dwarf African hyacinth
Family: Hyacinthaceae

A dwarf ledebouria, with erect to spreading, grass-like leaves and very small bulbs, usually locally abundant, where it occurs in moist soil in grassland;...

28 / 11 / 2016 | Andrew Hankey | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Watsonia strictiflora

Watsonia strictiflora
Common names: Klipheuwel watsonia (Eng.); Klipheuwel lakpypie (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Watsonia strictiflora is a striking, rose-pink-flowered, dwarf species with peculiar perianth tubes that are straight and constricted below and strongly...

28 / 11 / 2016 | Graham Duncan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Alepidea natalensis

Alepidea natalensis
Common names: Natal star flower
Family: Apiaceae

A dainty perennial with starry white flowers on long stalks, from the grasslands of the Drakensberg....

21 / 11 / 2016 | Lungani Mlaba | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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