Endostemon obtusifolius

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Endostemon obtusifolius
Scientific classification OOjs UI icon edit-ltr.svg
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Clade: Asterids
Order: Lamiales
Family: Lamiaceae
Genus: Endostemon
Species:
E. obtusifolius
Binomial name
Endostemon obtusifolius
(E.Mey. ex Benth.) N.E.Br.
Synonyms
  • Ocimum obtusifoliumE.Mey. ex Benth.
  • Ocimum laxiflorumBaker
  • Ocimum rariflorumHochst.
  • Plectranthus rariflorusHochst.

Endostemon obtusifolius, commonly called the minty keepsafe, is a species of flowering plant in the family Lamiaceae. It is native to southeastern Africa. [2]

Contents

Description

This species is a straggling to erect herb or soft shrub 0.5–1.5 m (1 ft 8 in – 4 ft 11 in) tall, much branched, with hispid stems. [3]

The leaves are borne on stalks, with broadly ovate blades 15–40 mm (0.59–1.57 in) long. The upper surface is thinly hairy, while the underside is more coarsely hispid and distinctly reticulate-veined. The leaf tips are blunt to rounded, the bases obtuse to truncate, and the margins are shallowly crenate to serrate. The petioles are 5–15 mm (0.20–0.59 in) long. [3]

The inflorescences are lax racemes 150–300 mm (5.9–11.8 in) long, composed of many well-spaced whorls. Each whorl bears two to eight, occasionally up to twelve, flowers. The bracts are ovate and tapering, 4–5 mm (0.16–0.20 in) long. The calyx is hispid and about 3.5 mm (0.14 in) long at flowering, enlarging to 6–7 mm (0.24–0.28 in) in fruit. The corolla is white and about 5 mm (0.20 in) long. [3]

Endostemon obtusifolius flowers from November to May. [4]

Identification

In tropic eastern Africa, this species can be distinguished from Endostemon villosus and Endostemon usambarensis by its shorter, white flowers. [5]

Distribution and habitat

Endostemon obtusifolius grows in forest margins and along wooded streams in Angola, Eswatini, Malawi, Mozambique, Tanzania, Zambia, Zimbabwe, and South Africa. In the latter country, it can be found from the Soutpansberg to Barberton, through coastal and semi-coastal Kwazulu-Natal into the Eastern Cape. [2] [6]

Notes

  1. ↑ "Endostemon obtusifolius". Red List of South African Plants. SANBI. Retrieved 2026-01-15.
  2. 1 2 "Endostemon obtusifolius (E.Mey. ex Benth.) N.E.Br". Plants of the World Online. The Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  3. 1 2 3 Codd, L. E. W., Dyer, R. A., Rycroft, H. B., de Winter, B. (1985). Flora of Southern Africa: The Republic of South Africa, Basutoland, Swaziland and South West Africa. Vol. 28. Govt. Printer. pp. 127–128. ISBN   0621082686.
  4. ↑ Bredenkamp, C. L. (2019). A Flora of the Eastern Cape Province. Vol. 2. SANBI. p. 1129. ISBN   9781928224280.
  5. ↑ Paton, A.J.; Bramley, G.; Ryding, O.; Polhill, R.M.; Harvey, Y.B.; Iwarsson, M.; Willis, F.; Phillipson, P.B.; Balkwill, K.; Lukhoba, C.W.; Otieno, D.F.; Harley, R.M. (2009). Flora of Tropical East Africa: Lamiaceae (Labiatae). Kew: Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. pp. 205–206. ISBN   978 1 84246 372 7 . Retrieved 15 January 2026.
  6. ↑ Klopper, R.R. & Winter, P.J.D., ed. (20 March 2025). "The South African National Plant Checklist: 2025 official yearly release". South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI). Retrieved 13 January 2026.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: editors list (link)

See also

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