Plants of the Week

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E.g., 12/11/2024
E.g., 12/11/2024

Stachys tubulosa

Stachys tubulosa
Common names: mauve sage, mauve stachys
Family: Lamiaceae

Best grown in shady conditions, Stachys tubulosa is an attractive, evergreen and hardy plant that displays its tubular mauve flowers during the summer...

06 / 06 / 2016 | Sisanda Alakhe Velembo-Mhlauli | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Senecio oxyriifolius

Senecio oxyriifolius has discoid, yellow flowerheads
Common names: false nasturtium (Eng.); kappertjieblaar (Afr.); idumbe, idumbe lasendhle, ihlula (isiZulu)
Family: Asteraceae

An unusual succulent herb with ornamental nasturtium-like leaves that is a rewarding, low maintenance and water-wise garden plant or container plant for...

20 / 06 / 2016 | Lungani Mlaba | KwaZulu-Natal NBG
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Searsia natalensis

Searsia natalensis (Geoff Nicholls)
Common names: dune karee, Natal karee, northern dune currant, northern dune currant-rhus (Eng.); duinekaree, natalkaree, noordelike duinekaree (Afr.); umgwele, ingw
Family: Anacardiaceae

An attractive hedge or garden tree that is also used medicinally for various ailments. It can be easily propagated from seed....

08 / 08 / 2016 | M.S. Mothogoane | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Stoeberia giftbergensis

Stoeberia giftbergensis
Common names: Gifberg tree-mesemb (Eng.); Gifberg-boomvygie (Afr.)
Family: Aizoaceae

A large, shrubby, leaf succulent with white to pink flowers in spring; it is a rare endemic of the Gifberg in the Western Cape....

15 / 08 / 2016 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Salvia scabra

Salvia scabra
Common names: coast blue sage (Eng.); kuskruipsalie (Afr.); usikiki (isiXhosa)
Family: Lamiaceae

Salvia scabra is a dainty sage which is adorned with mauve flowers between spring and autumn, with its peak flowering in summer. Being water-wise and its...

12 / 09 / 2016 | Monique Mcquillan | 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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Syncolostemon canescens

Syncolostemon canescens
Common names: coconut-scented sagebush, grey-haired sagebush
Family: Lamiaceae

A small, aromatic perennial, with dainty, purplish pink, summer flowers and leaves that have a strong and unusual fruity, coconutty scent; a ‘must-have’...

13 / 03 / 2017 | Alice Notten | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Sesamum eriocarpum

Dicerocaryum eriocarpum (Nicola van Berkel, iSpot)
Common names: devil’s thorn (Eng.); beesdubbeltjie, duiwelsdoring, seepbos (Afr.); intekelane (Ndebele); makanagwe (Tswana)
Family: Pedaliaceae

Sesamum eriocarpum is a perennial herb which creeps along the ground in the Kalahari, with beautiful, bright mauve flowers that magnificently compliment...

30 / 01 / 2017 | Lerato Hoveka | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Syncolostemon macranthus

Syncolostemon macranthus
Common names: long-flowered sagebush, long-flowered pink plume
Family: Lamiaceae

An attractive, shrubby perennial, with bright pink to mauve flowers, in summer....

20 / 02 / 2017 | Mpendulo Gabayi | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Sansevieria hallii

Sansevieria hallii
Common names: sickle-leaf mother-in-law’s-tongue (Eng.); sekelblaar-skoonma-se-tong (Afr.)
Family: Ruscaceae

Sansevieria hallii represents a rare succulent, with mottled, sickle-shaped leaves and beautiful white flowers. It is confined to the northeastern parts...

06 / 03 / 2017 | Ernst van Jaarsveld | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Senecio gerrardii

Capitula of Senecio gerrardii.
Common names: foma, leshwabe, moroborobo o monyenyane (Sesotho)
Family: Asteraceae

Visitors to wetland areas in Mpumalanga would be very familiar with this very characteristic species. It is particularly common in the Verlorenvlei area,...

17 / 07 / 2017 | Marinda Koekemoer | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Sarcophyte sanguinea subsp. sanguinea

Sarcophyte sanguinea (Detlef Schnabel)
Common names: wolwekos (Afr.); ihlule, umavumbuka (isiZulu)
Family: Balanophoraceae

Sarcophyte sanguinea subsp. sanguinea is a parasitic plant that occurs on the roots of trees and shrubs, especially on African acacias (Vachellia species)....

25 / 09 / 2017 | Mduduzi Nkwanyana | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Struthiola striata

Struthiola striata
Common names: roemenaggie, katstertjie (Afr.)
Family: Thymelaeaceae

A pretty shrub with four petaloid scales and cream-coloured flowers, honey-scented at night....

15 / 01 / 2018 | Thuli Makhoba | Compton Herbarium
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Stachys aethiopica

Stachys aethiopica
Common names: African stachys, wild sage (Eng.); katbossie, katpisbossie (Afr.);bokhatha, bolae-ba-litaola, likhobe-tsa-balisana (SSo.)
Family: Lamiaceae

Stachys aethiopica is a vigorous and versatile spring-flowering groundcover, suitable for sun to shade areas....

12 / 02 / 2018 | Monique Mcquillan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Stachys rugosa

Stachys rugosa (Adam Harrower)
Common names: grey tea stachys (Eng.); vaaltee, bojanntee, boesmantee, dassiekruie (Afr.); taraputsoe (SSo.)
Family: Lamiaceae

Spring flowering Stachys rugosa is a water-wise, ornamental, herbaceous perennial, with felted leaves that have a pungent aroma of pyrethrum or sheep dip,...

19 / 02 / 2018 | Monique Mcquillan | Kirstenbosch NBG
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Sida

Sida cordifolia
Common names: fanpetals, mallows, sidas (Eng.)
Family: Malvaceae

Sida’s weed-like habit and small flowers keep it away from the popularity enjoyed by its tropical splendour relative, the Hibiscus. The attraction...

26 / 02 / 2018 | Sushant Sharma | KwaZulu-Natal Herbarium
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Streptocarpus confusus

Streptocarpus confusus (Cherise Viljoen)
Common names: Cape primrose (Eng.)
Family: Gesneriaceae

A unique species of the genus Streptocarpus, exhibiting two special subspecies of unifoliate and monocarpic characteristics, boasting a large leaf with...

12 / 03 / 2018 | Renira Boodhraj | CREW
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Setaria verticillata

Setaria verticillata
Common names: bristly foxtail grass, bur bristlegrass, cat’s tails, klits setaria, love grass (Eng.); kat(te)stert(gras), klawergras, kleefgras, klitsgras, steekg
Family: Poaceae

Setaria verticillata is a species of grass known by the common name, bur bristlegrass. It is easily distinguished from other Setaria species by retrorsely...

14 / 05 / 2018 | Aluoneswi Caroline Mashau | National Herbarium Pretoria
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Schistostephium rotundifolium

Schistostephium rotundifolium
Common names: round-leaf flat-flower (Eng.); imadliwazimbuzi (Zul.)
Family: Asteraceae

A bushy shrub with decorative foliage and attractive yellow flowerheads in autumn to winter, suitable for sun or semi-shade....

21 / 05 / 2018 | Samuel Lekhetho | Free State NBG
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Strophanthus amboensis

Strophanthus amboensis
Common names: elephant vine, knob-stemmed poisonrope (Eng.); knopstamgiftou (Afr.); omhundure (Otjiherero); mangala-ndumbu (Lunyaneka, Muila & Muquilenge); muzua-ng
Family: Apocynaceae

When the Elephant Vine is well maintained, it can grow into a reasonable-sized bushy tree with extraordinary pretty, faintly but sweet-scented flowers...

03 / 09 / 2018 | Stoffel Petrus Pieter Bester | National Herbarium Pretoria
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