Plants of the Week

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E.g., 25/11/2024
E.g., 25/11/2024

Atalaya alata

Atalaya alata foliage
Common names: Lebombo krantz ash (Eng.); Lebombo kransesseboom (Afr.); umzondo, umnondo (Zulu)
Family: Sapindaceae

Introduce a finer texture in your garden by planting Atalaya alata....

13 / 10 / 2008 | Giles Mbambezeli | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Asystasia varia

Asystsia varia
Common names: Asystasia
Family: Acanthaceae

This lovely garden plant grows very well in shady gardens, as well as in containers (hanging baskets), which is probably the most innovative way to optimize...

13 / 02 / 2006 | T Mukoma | Lowveld NBG
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Asystasia gangetica

Growing as a groundcover in sun
Common names: creeping foxglove (Eng.); Isihobo (Zulu)
Family: Acanthaceae

If you have a large expanse that needs covering, try the magic of this African beauty. Creeping foxglove is the most rewarding and friendliest of all the...

21 / 06 / 2004 | E Lithudzha | Pretoria NBG
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Astroloba subg. Poellnitzia

Family: Asphodelaceae

This subgenus comprises a single species....

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Pretoria NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Vastora

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are glossy. Due to their relatively small divergence angle, the leaves form five ranks that are either vertical...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Pretoria NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Intercedens

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are matt. Their flowers have dull-coloured perianth tubes and cream-coloured lobes. The two species co-occur,...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Pretoria NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Inflata

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are matt and unadorned. The inflorescence is usually unbranched, and the flowers have somewhat inflated perianth...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Pretoria NBG
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Astroloba subg. Astroloba sect. Astroloba

Family: Asphodelaceae

The species in this section have leaves that are often tuberculed, with one margin of each leaf usually losing its identity near the leaf apex. The relatively...

18 / 09 / 2023 | | Pretoria NBG
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Astroloba rubriflora

Astroloba rubriflora
Common names: red-flowered astroloba
Family: Asphodelaceae

Astroloba rubriflora is the only plant in its genus that has red flowers. The tubular flowers face upwards, and are adapted to attract sunbirds for pollination,...

19 / 08 / 2019 | Ricardo Riddles | Karoo Desert NBG
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Astroloba genus

Astroloba spirella in a nurse plant east of Ladismith
Common names: astrolobas, starlobes (Eng.); astrolobas, kleinaalwyne, koedoekos, steekaalwyntjies (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Astrolobas are aloes in the miniature and well adapted to their arid karroid environments. They form clusters of stems that are densely packed with small,...

18 / 09 / 2023 | Ronell R. Klopper | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Astroloba cremnophila

Astroloba cremnophila
Common names: cliff astroloba (Eng.); krans-astroloba (Afr.)
Family: Asphodelaceae

Astroloba cremnophila is a small, cluster-forming, leaf succulent from the cliffs along the Buffelsrivier. The plant has leafy, succulent stems, the leaves...

28 / 03 / 2016 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Asteraceae

Arctotis stoechadifolia
Common names: daisy family, sunflower family, thistle family (Eng.); madeliefie-familie, sonneblom-familie (Afr.) Class: Dicotyledoneae (Angiospermae) Order: Astera
Family: Asteraceae

This is probably the largest family of flowering plants, with more than 25 000 species world-wide, growing from sea-level to the highest mountain peaks....

26 / 04 / 2004 | Paul Herman | Pretoria NBG
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Aster laevigatus

Aster laevigatus flower head
Common names: Van Staden's aster
Family: Asteraceae

 Aster laevigatus is a little, white to mauve daisy first discovered in the early 1900's. Only a single specimen was taken to London and...

10 / 05 / 2010 | C Cowell | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Asparagus virgatus

Asparagus virgatus. Photo Dr Wynand Uys
Common names: broom asparagus, slender asparagus, ‘Tiki’ fern, African broom fern (Eng.); makkatdoring, katstertjie (Afr.); ibutha, ihabiya, iphinganhloya, unwe
Family: Asparagaceae

Asparagus virgatus is an evergreen, perennial plant that produces small, greenish white flowers in summer, and small, spheroid, red seeds. It is also known...

02 / 02 / 2015 | Aluwani Tshiila | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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Asparagus scandens

Asparagus scandens
Common names: climbing asparagus (Eng.); krulkransie (Afr.)
Family: Asparagaceae

Asparagus scandens is a delicate-looking yet sturdy forest-dwelling climbing perennial, ideal for a trellis in a small garden or as a groundcover under...

15 / 03 / 2010 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Asparagus rubicundus

Asparagus rubicundus
Common names: red-stemmed asparagus, wild asparagus (Eng.); wag-‘n-bietjie, swart haakdoring (Afr.)
Family: Asparagaceae

An erect thorny shrub with glossy, reddish brown, thorny stems, soft feathery foliage and starry white flowers, and one of the fastest growing species...

10 / 06 / 2019 | Loretta Floors | Harold Porter NBG
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Asparagus retrofractus

Asparagus retrofractus
Common names: zigzag asparagus, ming fern bush; ming asparagus; pom pom asparagus (Eng.); katdoring (Afr.)
Family: Asparagaceae

Quite often, this plant is mistaken for a fern when in-fact it is an attractive, scrambling herbaceous flowering plant, that has zigzagging stems clothed...

12 / 10 / 2020 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Asparagus ramosissimus

Foliage and fruits
Common names: cascade asparagus (Eng.); krulkransie (Afr.); ibutha (Zulu and siSwati); kgopa, sesilatsane (Sesotho)
Family: Asparagaceae

Asparagus ramosissimus is an evergreen perennial with abundant soft, light green foliage and a cascading habit, suited to the shady garden or patio....

11 / 05 / 2015 | Nomama Mei | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Asparagus microraphis

Asparagus microraphis (Geoff Nichols)
Common names: needles wild-asparagus (Eng.), katdoring (Afr.), lala-tau, lehonyeli, lelala-tau, leu-nyeli, mankoe (Sesotho)
Family: Asparagaceae

An evergreen shrub that is used medicinally by Sesotho speaking people for the treatment of venereal diseases....

25 / 07 / 2016 | Aluwani Tshiila | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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Asparagus falcatus

Asparagus falcatus creeper
Common names: large forest asparagus, thorny creeper, sicklethorn, yellowwood asparagus (Eng.); doringtou (Afr.); imblekazana (isiZulu); ubulawu (isiXhosa)
Family: Asparagaceae

Asparagus falcatus is a robust thorny creeper that has attractive white flowers and red berries and will easily double as a safety hedge against unwanted...

10 / 11 / 2008 | Bernard Brown | Kirstenbosch NBG
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