Plants of the Week

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E.g., 24/11/2024
E.g., 24/11/2024

Hesperantha pauciflora

Common names: pink evening flower, pink hesperantha (Eng.); pienkaandblom (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Hesperantha pauciflora is an attractive geophyte growing up to 150 mm high. This plant grows as a deciduous perennial and forms small tubers with a hard...

04 / 04 / 2011 | Eugene Marinus | Hantam NBG
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Hesperantha sufflava

Plant in flower:Image copyright Peter Goldblatt
Common names: evening flower (Eng.); aandblom (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

Once thought to be extinct in the wild, Hesperantha sufflava, a delicate, cormous perennial, was rediscovered on an urban development site in 2004, antithetically...

09 / 04 / 2007 | C Cowell | Millennium Seed Bank Partnership
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Hesperantha vaginata

Hesperantha vaginata flowers
Common names: harlequin evening flower (Eng.); harlekynaandblom, perdeblom (Afr.)
Family: Iridaceae

The bright yellow flowers of Hesperantha vaginata, with their distinctive dark brown markings, have formed a very close evolutionary relationship with...

17 / 10 / 2011 | Colleen Rust | Hantam NBG
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Hessea

Hessea stellaris. Colin Paterson-Jones
Common names: umbrella lilies; sambreeltjies (Afr.)
Family: Amaryllidaceae

Hessea, with its delicate, umbrella-like clusters of star-shaped autumn flowers, is designed to delight....

26 / 05 / 2014 | D Snijman | Compton Herbarium
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Heterolepis aliena

Heterolepis aliena
Common names: rock daisy (Eng.); rotsgousblom (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

When walking through the Mathews Rockery in Kirstenbosch during early summer, it is impossible to miss Heterolepis aliena. It is quite dazzling, covered...

17 / 11 / 2003 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Heteromorpha arborescens

Heteromorpha arborescens
Common names: parsley tree (Eng.); wildepietersielie, pietersieliebos (Afr.), umbangadlala (Zul.), umbangadlala, umbangandlatho, umbangeza, iyeza-lempambano (Xho.)
Family: Apiaceae

This small to medium-sized, deciduous tree or straggly shrub is suitable for a small, low-maintenance garden. The bark often helps to distinguish it from...

13 / 10 / 2003 | Shireen Harris | Free State NBG
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Heteropyxis natalensis

Heteropyxis natalensis
Common names: Lavender Tree, Laventelboom (A), iNkunzi (Z)
Family: Heteropyxidaceae

This is an attractive small tree suitable for townhouse gardens....

24 / 06 / 2002 | Mhlonishwa D Dlamini | Walter Sisulu NBG
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Hibiscus calyphyllus

Flower
Common names: hibiscus, sun hibiscus, lemon-yellow rosemallow (Eng.); wildestokroos (Afr.)
Family: Malvaceae

This perennial shrub with its striking, large, lemon-yellow flowers and velvety leaves is perfect as an informal border or as a centrepiece in a small...

25 / 02 / 2008 | Lou-nita LeRoux | Lowveld NBG
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Hibiscus pedunculatus

Hibiscus pedunculatus flower
Common names: pink mallow, forest pink hibiscus (Eng.); wildestokroos, pienk hibiskus (Afr.); indola ebomvu (Zulu)
Family: Malvaceae

A delicate, delightful, indigenous hibiscus, with bright pink flowers on dainty stalks....

12 / 07 / 2010 | Cherise Viljoen | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Hibiscus praeteritus

Hibiscus praeteritus
Common names: None
Family: Malvaceae

The colourful, floriferous and water-wise Hibiscus praeteritus is a spectacular shrub worthy of a special place in your garden....

20 / 07 / 2009 | Roger Oliver | Pretoria NBG
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Hibiscus tiliaceus

Hibiscus tiliaceus flower Image Geoff Nichols
Common names: wild cotton tree, coast hibiscus, lagoon hibiscus, tree hibiscus (Eng.); wildekatoenboom, kusvuurblom (Afr.)
Family: Malvaceae

Hibiscus tiliaceus is the only Hibiscus species which really becomes a small tree. It belongs to a family that is unmistakable when in flower, the cotton...

22 / 04 / 2013 | Nonkululo Phephu | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Hippia frutescens

Corymb of flowers. Image N van Berkel
Common names: scrambling wormwood (Eng.); rankals, kanferbossie (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

This is a good plant for moist gardens and also has a traditional medicinal use....

12 / 05 / 2014 | B Busch | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Hoodia gordonii

Hoodia gordonii
Common names: bitter ghaap (Eng.); bitterghaap, muishondghaap, wolweghaap, bobbejaanghaap, bergghaap, bokhorings (Afr.); khobab (Khoi)
Family: Apocynaceae

Hoodia gordonii is one of the most sought after succulents due to its medicinal properties. It has been called one of the wonder plants of the twenty-first...

18 / 07 / 2005 | Ian Oliver | Karoo Desert NBG
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Hoslundia opposita

Hoslundia opposita
Common names: orange bird berry, bird gooseberry (Eng.); Uyaweyawe (Zulu)
Family: Lamiaceae

This hardy garden plant bears brightly coloured, tasty edible fruits and is an excellent subject for container gardening, which is a useful way to make...

11 / 07 / 2005 | T Mukoma | Lowveld NBG
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Huernia pendula

Huernia pendula growing on a shale cliff near Bolo Reserve along the Kei River
Common names: bootlace huernia (Eng.); skoenveter-aasblom (Afr.); imitya (Xhosa)
Family: Apocynaceae

Huernia pendula is a cliff hanger with rope-like leafless branches and bowl-shaped pendent flowers confined to dry river valleys in the Eastern Cape....

13 / 12 / 2010 | | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Hyacinthaceae

Eucomis bicolor
Common names: hyacinth family
Family: Hyacinthaceae

This is a family of 700-900 species of deciduous, or rarely evergreen, bulbous plants, several with brightly coloured flowers, that is well represented...

11 / 10 / 2004 | John Manning | Compton Herbarium
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Hyaenanche globosa

A young gifboom growing among sandstone rocks
Common names: hyaena-poison (Eng.); gifboom, wolwegifboom, wolweboontjie, boesmansgif
Family: Picrodendraceae

The gifboom is a large evergreen fynbos shrub or small tree endemic to the Gifberg of the northern Bokkeveld Escarpment just south of Vanrhynsdorp (northern...

28 / 02 / 2011 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Hydnora africana

Inside of H.africana flower
Common names: jackal food (Eng.); jakkalskos, bobbejaankos (Afr.)
Family: Hydnoraceae

Hydnora africana is one of the most bizarre-looking plants on the African continent and is certainly not the most common of plants to be encountered...

23 / 06 / 2008 | Werner Voigt | Harold Porter NBG
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Hydrostachys polymorpha

Growing in white water
Common names: white-waters plant (Eng.), phophoma-lasemanzini (Z)
Family: Hydrostachyaceae

This unusual plant is unable to survive without the turbulence of water. It thrives in the white waters which give such a thrill to rafters. Living life...

06 / 12 / 2004 | R Glen | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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Hymenolepis crithmifolia

Hymenolepis crithmifolia
Common names: coulter-bush (Eng.); koulterbos, pôbos, pokbos (Afr.)
Family: Asteraceae

Do you need to brighten a dull area in your garden? Then plant Hymenolepis crithmifolia in masses there - it will bring a bright yellow glow...

12 / 09 / 2005 | Paul Herman | National Herbarium Pretoria
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