Flora of Southern Africa

Amaryllis is the only genus in the subtribe Amaryllidinae (tribe Amaryllideae). It is a small genus of flowering bulbs, with two species. The better known of the two, Amaryllis belladonna, is a native of the Western Cape region of South Africa, particularly the rocky southwest area between the Olifants River Valley and Knysna. For many years there was confusion among botanists over the generic names Amaryllis and Hippeastrum, one result of which is that the common name 'amaryllis' is mainly used for cultivars of the genus Hippeastrum, widely sold in the winter months for their ability to

Rooibos ( ROY-boss; Afrikaans: [ˈroːibɔs] , lit. 'red bush'), or Aspalathus linearis, is a broom-like member of the plant family Fabaceae that grows in South Africa's Fynbos biome. The leaves are used to make a caffeine-free herbal infusion that has been popular in Southern Africa for generations. Since the 2000s, rooibos has gained popularity internationally, with an earthy flavour and aroma that is similar to yerba mate or tobacco. Outside of Southern Africa, it is called bush tea, red tea, or redbush tea (predominantly in Great Britain). The name rooibos is Afrikaans deriving from rooi

Amaryllis belladonna, the Jersey lily, belladonna-lily, naked-lady-lily, or March lily, is a plant species native to Cape Province in South Africa but widely cultivated as an ornamental. It is reportedly naturalized in many places: Corsica, Portugal, the Azores, Madeira, the Canary Islands, the Scilly Isles of Great Britain, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Ascension Island, Australia, New Zealand, Mexico, Cuba, Haiti, the Dominican Republic, Chile, California, Texas, Louisiana, Mississippi, Michigan, Indiana and the Juan Fernández Islands.

Protea cynaroides, also called the king protea (from Afrikaans: koningsprotea, Xhosa: isiQwane sobukumkani), is a flowering plant. It is a distinctive member of Protea, having the largest flower head in the genus. The species is also known as giant protea, honeypot, or king sugar bush. It is widely distributed in the fynbos region of South Africa, that is, in the southwestern and southern parts of Western Cape. The king protea is the national flower of South Africa. Protea cynaroides is adapted to survive wildfires by its thick underground stem, which contains many dormant buds; these will

Carpobrotus edulis is a creeping plant with succulent leaves in the genus Carpobrotus, native to South Africa. Its common names include hottentot-fig, sour fig, ice plant, highway ice plant, or vygie.

Crassula arborescens—the silver jade plant, silver dollar (jade) plant, beestebul, Chinese jade, cookie plant, money plant, or money tree, that is endemic to Western Cape, South Africa, is a species of succulent plant in the family Crassulaceae.

Roridula (; from Latin roridus "dewy") is a genus of evergreen, insect-trapping shrubs, with two species, of about 1.3–2 m (4.3–6.6 ft). It is the only genus in the family Roridulaceae. It has thin, woody, shyly branching, upright, initially brown, later grey stems, with lance- to awl-shaped leaves crowded at their tips. The star-symmetrical flowers consist from the outside in of five, green or reddish, free sepals, alternating with five white, pink or purple, free petals. Further to the middle and opposite the sepals are five stamens with the anthers initially kinked down. These suddenly

Ixia is a genus of cormous plants native to South Africa from the family Iridaceae. Some of them are known as the corn lily. Some distinctive traits include sword-like leaves and long wiry stems with star-shaped flowers. It usually prefers well-drained soil. The popular corn lily has specific, not very intense fragrance. It is often visited by many insects such as bees. The Ixia are also used sometimes as ornamental plants. The genus is endemic to the Cape Provinces of western South Africa. The genus name is derived from the Ancient Greek ἰξία (ixia) ( = χαμαιλέων λευκός, (chamaeleon

Agapanthus africanus, commonly named the African lily, is a flowering plant from the genus Agapanthus found only on rocky sandstone slopes of the winter rainfall fynbos from the Cape Peninsula to Swellendam. It is also called the lily of the Nile in spite of only growing in South Africa.

Encephalartos woodii, Wood's cycad, is a rare cycad in the genus Encephalartos, and is endemic to the oNgoye Forest of KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. It is one of the rarest plants in the world, being extinct in the wild with all specimens being clones of the type. The specific and common name both honour John Medley Wood, curator of the Durban Botanic Garden and director of the Natal Government Herbarium of South Africa, who discovered the plant in 1895.

Drosera capensis, the Cape sundew, is a perennial rosette-forming carnivorous herb in the flowering plant family Droseraceae. It is native to the Cape region of South Africa, where it grows in permanently wet, nutrient-poor habitats. Its elongated, roughly oblong leaves are held semi-erect and have a distinct petiole. It is quite a variable plant with several recognised growth forms, some of which form a short stem. As in all sundews, the leaves are covered in stalked glands that secrete sticky mucilage. These attract, trap, and digest arthropod prey, obtaining nutrients that supplement

Aloe succotrina, the Fynbos aloe, is an aloe which is endemic to Cape Town and the south-western corner of the Western Cape, South Africa.

Aloe polyphylla, the spiral aloe, kroonaalwyn, lekhala kharetsa, or many-leaved aloe, is a species of flowering plant in the genus Aloe that is endemic to the Kingdom of Lesotho in the Drakensberg mountains. An evergreen succulent perennial, it is well known for its strikingly symmetrical, five-pointed spiral growth habit.

Solanum linnaeanum is a nightshade species known as devil's apple and, in some places where it is introduced, apple of Sodom. The latter name is also used for other nightshades and entirely different plants elsewhere, in particular the poisonous milkweed Calotropis procera. This poisonous plant bearing tomato-like fruit is native to many African countries Kenya, Tanzania, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Mozambique, and is considered to be an invasive species in Australia, New Zealand, Hawaii, Fiji, New Caledonia, other Pacific Islands, the Aseer region of Saudi Arabia, and northern areas of

Drosera regia, commonly known as the king sundew, is a carnivorous plant in the sundew genus Drosera that is endemic to a single valley in South Africa. Individual leaves can reach 70 cm (28 in) in length. It has many unusual relict characteristics not found in most other Drosera species, including woody rhizomes, operculate pollen, and the lack of circinate vernation in scape growth. All of these factors, combined with molecular data from phylogenetic analysis, contribute to the evidence that D. regia possesses some of the most ancient characteristics within the genus. Some of these are

Pleiospilos is a genus of succulent flowering plants of the family Aizoaceae. It is endemic to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. The name is derived from the Greek pleios "many" and spìlos "spot". The plants are also known as kwaggavy ("Quagga mesemb"), lewerplant ("liver plant"), lewervygie ("liver mesemb"), klipplant ("stone plant"), split rock or mimicry plant. Pleiospilos species have two or four opposite, very fleshy, grey-green leaves growing from a short stem that may be underground. The leaves, with their hemispherical shape and pitted texture, often strongly resemble a pile of

Mesembryanthemum cordifolium, formerly known as Aptenia cordifolia, is a species of succulent plant in the iceplant family. It is a creeping plant that forms a carpet of flat-growing perennial herbs in groups on the ground from a base. The genus name means middle-embryo flower in reference to the position of the ovary in the flower. The specific epithet is derived from Latin for heart-shaped leaves.

Lanaria is a monotypic genus of flowering plants containing a single species, Lanaria lanata, endemic to the southern coast of South Africa where it is associated with the fynbos belt. Lanaria lanata is commonly known as Cape edelweiss or lambtails. The genus is placed in the monotypic family Lanariaceae, a family only recently recognized by taxonomists. The APG IV system of 2016 (unchanged from the 1998, the 2003 and 2009 versions) does recognize this family. This species occurs on clay and sandstone soils throughout its distribution range. The stiff, ribbed leaves arise from a woody

Kniphofia uvaria is a species of flowering plant in the family Asphodelaceae, commonly known as tritomea, torch lily, or red hot poker, due to the shape and color of its inflorescence. The leaves are reminiscent of a lily, and the flowerhead can reach up to 1.5 m (5 ft) in height. There are many varieties of torch lily, and they bloom at different times during the growing season. The flowers are red, orange, and yellow.

Faucaria is a genus of around 8 species of succulent subtropical flowering plants of the family Aizoaceae. The name comes from the Latin word fauces (“animal mouth”) because of the appearance of "teeth" on the leaves. Faucaria species are native to the Cape Province of South Africa and the Karoo Desert.

Pelargonium peltatum is a scrambling perennial plant with five shallow or deeply lobed, circular- to heart-shaped, somewhat fleshy leaves, sometimes with a differently coloured semicircular band, that has been assigned to the cranesbill family. It carries umbel-like inflorescences with 2–10, white to mauve, bilateral symmetrical flowers, each with a "spur" that is merged with the flower stalk. It is known by several common names including ivy-leaved pelargonium and cascading geranium. It is native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. In its home range, it flowers year round but most

Aloe brevifolia, the short-leaved aloe, is a species of flowering plant in the family Asphodelaceae. It is a tiny, compact, blue-green evergreen succulent perennial, that is native to the Western Cape, South Africa. Listed as Endangered on SANBI's Red List, it is threatened in its natural habitat, but is also widely popular as an ornamental plant in rock gardens and xeriscapes worldwide.

Aloe africana (known as the Uitenhage aloe) is an arborescent (tree-like) species of aloe plant, indigenous to the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa.

Sparaxis is a genus of flowering plants called the harlequin flowers. It belongs to the iris family Iridaceae with about 13 species endemic to Cape Province, South Africa. All are perennials that grow during the wet winter season, flower in spring and survive underground as dormant corms over summer. Their conspicuous flowers have six tepals, which in most species are equal in size and shape. Sparaxis bulbifera has flowers from cream to yellow or purple. Sparaxis grandiflora is a similar but larger plant. In cultivation in the UK it has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden

Glottiphyllum is a genus of about 57 species of succulent subtropical plants of the family Aizoaceae. It is closely related to the Gibbaeum and Faucaria genera. The name comes from ancient Greek γλωττίς glottis "tongue" and φύλλον phyllon "leaf". The species are native to South Africa, specifically to Cape Province and the Karoo desert. They grow in rocks and soils incorporating slate, sandstone and quartz. Rainfall in their native areas is between 125 and 500 mm (4.9 and 19.7 in), most of which falls in March and November.

Euphorbia obesa is a subtropical succulent species of flowering plant in the genus Euphorbia. It comes from the arid Karoo in the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa. It is sometimes referred to as the baseball plant. In the wild it is endangered because of over-collection and poaching, combined with its slow growth, and the fact that the pod contains only two or three seeds. However, it is widely cultivated in botanical gardens.

Curio rowleyanus, syn. Senecio rowleyanus, is a flowering plant in the daisy family Asteraceae. It is a creeping, perennial, succulent vine native to the Cape Provinces of South Africa. In its natural environment its stems trail on the ground, rooting where they touch and form dense mats. It often avoids direct sunlight by growing in the shade of other plants and rocks. It is commonly known as string-of-pearls or string-of-beads. "String-of-beads" and several other common names are shared with Curio herreanus (string of watermelons), which has teardrop-shaped leaves, rather than spherical.

Aloe perfoliata, the rubble aloe or mitre aloe, is a hardy creeping aloe, found in rocky, mountainous areas throughout the Western Cape, South Africa.

Leucadendron argenteum (silver tree, silver leaf tree, Afrikaans: Witteboom, or Afrikaans: Silwerboom) is an endangered plant species in the family Proteaceae, which is endemic to a small area of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. Most grow in and around the city of Cape Town, but outlying (perhaps introduced) populations exist near Somerset West (Silwerboomkloof), Paarl and Stellenbosch. It is a protected tree in South Africa.

Frithia is a genus of succulent plants in the family Aizoaceae, indigenous to several small rocky areas in the vicinity of Gauteng Province, South Africa.