Sansevieria aethiopica
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Image 1
Habit
20 Dec 2015
Image 2
Habit
02 Apr 2015
Image 3
Habit
02 Apr 2015
| Family: | Dracanaceae |
| Full name: | Sansevieria aethiopica Thunb. |
| ID status: | Fairly certain |
| Afrikaans common name(s): | Wildewortel |
| English common name(s): | Bowstring hemp, Mother-in-law's tongue |
| Synonym(s): | Sansevieria caespitosa Dinter fide Fl. S. Africa 5(3): 7 (1992). Sansevieria glauca Gérôme & Labroy Sansevieria scabrifolia Dinter Sansevieria thunbergii Mattei |
| Status: | Native |
| Description: | Rhizomatous perennials forming large colonies. Rhizome long, the new shoots placed fairly far apart, roots typical. Leaves rosulate, numerous, up to 15 or more, usually in fascicles of 3, erect to somewhat spreading, half folded, narrowly linear, up to 350 x 10-20 mm, hard and rough in texture (epidermis minutely papillate), mottled with light and dark irregular horizontal bands, margin red with a colourless membranous outer ridge. Inflorescence a simple, dense, many-flowered spike, exserted from leaf cluster, 0.35-0.75 m high; peduncle with some scattered, membranous bracts. Flowers in clusters, surrounded at the base by a membranous, ovate bract; pedicel 5 mm long. Perianth 50 mm long, variable in colour, white, purple or cream with purple margins; tube contracted below ovary for 4 mm, expanded and globose around ovary, narrowly cylindrical in upper half, 35 mm long; lobes, narrow, recurved, 13 mm long. Stamens much exserted, erect; filaments filiform; anthers versatile, 3 mm l ... (from JSTOR Global Plants website / Flora of Southern Africa) Acaulescent rosulate herb; rhizome subterranean, 1.2 cm thick, with orange-grey roots. Leaves erect to slightly recurved, half folded, 2 per plant, lanceolate, 25–32 x 0.8–1.2 cm, acute, subulate tip 0.3–0.5 cm long and slightly horny, margin bright brownish red, less than 1 mm wide, grey-green bands against dark green background on both surfaces, bright brownish red at base becoming grey-brown towards apex; sheathing base turns greyish green, smooth on both surfaces; basal scaly leaves 2, 1.9–2.6≈2 cm, membranous, obtuse to acute, evident veins converging at apex. Inflorescence a spike-like raceme 54 cm long, axis 0.3–0.5 cm across; flowers 2–3 per cluster; lower inflorescence bracts 5, 5.5–6.5 cm apart, erect, greenish grey, 2–4.5 x 0.6 cm, acute, membranous; bracteoles greenish grey, 0.5–0.8 cm long, acute, membranous; pedicels 0.2–0.3 cm long, not articulated. Flower perianth 3.9–4.1 cm long, 0.2 cm wide; tube greyish purple to green, 1.8–2.1 cm long, narrowed above the ovary, lobes purplish green, 1.5–2 cm long; stamens 2–2.2 cm long, exserted beyond lobes, anthers 3.5 mm long; style 4–4.3 cm long, exserted beyond the stamens. Fruit a yellowish green berry, 0.5–1.2 cm in diameter. (from JSTOR Global Plants website / Flora of Tropical East Africa) |
| Link(s) |
African Plant Database
JSTOR Plant Science Kew Herbarium Catalogue BGBM Berlin-Dahlem - Virtual Herbarium Züricher Herbarien iNaturalist (Namibia / Alex Dreyer) iNaturalist (Namibia) iNaturalist (southern Africa) Flora of Zimbabwe Fleurs de notre Terre - Galerie Namibie Tree Atlas of Namibia |
| Content last updated: | 18 Apr 2024 |
