Upright shrub, 500mm tall, single-stemmed. Leaves subcordate around base, widest point below midpoint; below puberulous, eglandular and prominent nerve; above puberulous, quite flat; marginal glands, slightly crenate; petiole reddish, puberulous. Fruit entirely puberulous, scattered glandular pits, this young fruit with 2 carpals with one underdeveloped - not viable; large rotund process from viable carpal; 5mm. Pedicel 3mm, puberulous, puberulous basal bracteoles. Sepals puberulous, no stalked glands, not prominently keeled. Petals taper down to the base with no conspicuous claw; glabrous below; lightly ciliate above on bottom half; 3.5mm. Stamen glabrous, 5mm, tapers to both ends. Staminodes ciliate on inside only; 1.5mm; apical gland. Ovary glabrous.
(Ursinia anethoides)Uniondale
Not easy to tell apart.Rays not reddish below which does not support the ID.
Shallow soils over rock, exposed sandstone in places. Vegetation type given as North Langeberg Sandstone Fynbos FFs15. Hoping for the host plant, S. diffusa,
of butterfly Lepidochrysops littoralis (EN).
I think likely S. thomii (LC), with S. ramosissima as another option.
Plants scattered across the site. Photo of two different plants – calyx detail and locality of plant in first photo. Pics 8-10 of a different plant, same site.
Erf 21275
On east facing slope of kloof on south facing slope of Langeberg near Swellendam.
Leaves rolled with uniform short hair, and 3 teeth at apex.
Hairy on the outside of the corolla.
Plant to 15cm high.
Flowers solitary - to 15mm long.
Note hairy base of carina and curved acute side petals
We were puzzled by this one so referred it to Ted Oliver. This is what he said.“Well you would not have been able to identify your little Erica because it is an undescribed new species!! Yes it is rather like E. carduifolia but also bears strong likeness to the elusive E. ixanthera with which it shares those odd white to cream bulges at the tips of the leaves (easily seen in the photos). It has been collected several times in the Kouga Langkloof by Elsie Esterhuysen from 1944 to 1957. It is great that your team has turned it up as this will save lots of hunting by me or others in the areas where Elsie got her material. The few flowers seem to be mostly over, yet Elsie got hers in November. Perhaps we should go there a little earlier next year.
Now there is a good candidate for some DNA analysis to see where it comes out in the tree.”
Unsure but this has glabrous leaves ......
Drosera trinervia is a perennial carnivorous plant and can be recognised by its small basal rosettes covered with reddish, sticky, glandular hairs. The palnts are only 50 - 100 mm high and have one or two long, slightly swollen roots. The wedge-shaped laminas (leaf blades) have slightly rounded ends, 10-20 mm long and 4-7 mm wide. The three veins on the underside of the lamina are most noticeable on dead leaves. Petioles (leaf stalks) are absent but stipules are present on either side of the base of the lamina margin. The stipules, in the form of two thin filaments, are inconspicuous and deciduous. The glandular hairs or tentacles are much larger at the top of the lamina than at the base. The lower surface of the lamina is smooth and without hairs (glabrous) or becomes smooth with age (glabrescen). The flowering stalk originates directly from the centre of the plant. The inflorescence can reach up to 100 mm and 2-10 white or, infrequently, mauve to red flowers are borne closely together. The styles on the ovary are fringed at the top. Flowering occurs from August to November. Blackish-brown, ovoid seeds, 0.3 mm long, are formed in the oblong capsule.
This is the Outramps CREW 100,000 obs and we celebrated it with Tilla who is the Head of the Threatened Plants Programme and the CREW Programme. It represents our involvement with plant monitoring from 1992 to 2021. It has been a joyous ride. So thank you all for so many years of fun, laughs and learning. Keep going!