The Aizoaceae, or fig-marigold family, is a large family of dicotyledonous flowering plants containing 135 genera and about 1800 species. Several genera are commonly known as 'ice plants' or 'carpet weeds'. The Aizoaceae are also referred to as vygies in South Africa and New Zealand. Some of the unusual Southern African genera—such as Conophytum, Lithops, Titanopsis and Pleiospilos —resemble gemstones, rocks or pebbles, and are sometimes referred to as 'living stones' or 'mesembs'.
Lithops is a genus of succulent plants in the ice plant family, Aizoaceae. Members of the genus are native to southern Africa. The name is derived from the Ancient Greek words λίθος 'stone' and ὄψ 'face', referring to the stone-like appearance of the plants. They avoid being eaten by blending in with surrounding rocks and are often known as pebble plants or living stones. Lithops is both the genus name and the common name. The formation of the name from the Ancient Greek -ops means that even a single plant is called a Lithops.
Nicholas Edward Brown was an English plant taxonomist and authority on succulents. He was also an authority on several families of plants, including Asclepiadaceae, Aizoaceae, Labiatae and Cape plants.
Lithops bromfieldii, also called the living stone, is a succulent plant in the genus Lithops. It is native to the Northern Cape Province of South Africa.
The Johannesburg Botanical Garden is located in the suburb of Emmarentia in Johannesburg, South Africa. The gardens grew out of a large rose garden that was established in 1964 and subsequently expanded from 1969 to cover an area of around 125 hectares (1.25 km2). It is administered by Johannesburg City Parks. The Emmarentia Dam is situated immediately to the east of the garden and shares its extensive acreage. One of the main attractions is the Rose Garden with over 10 000 roses.
Lyndley Alan Craven was a botanist who became the Principal Research Scientist of the Australian National Herbarium.
Lithops aucampiae is a species of flowering plant in the family Aizoaceae, found in South Africa. it was named after Juanita Aucamp, who found a specimen on her father's farm in Postmasburg, Northern Cape in 1929.
Lithops viridis is a species of plant in the family Aizoaceae.
Lithops francisci, commonly known as one of the living stones or pebble plants, is in the family Aizoaceae. It is endemic to the arid desert environments of Namibia. It is a succulent with a natural habitat in rocky areas. L. francisci was assessed by Nicholas Edward Brown in 1925. It is one of the Lithops plants and shares the characteristic bi-leaf head pattern separated by a deep fissure, the bottom of which houses and protects the stunted stem.
The North-West University Botanical Garden on the Potchefstroom Campus of the North-West University (NWU) is the only botanical garden in the North West Province of South Africa. The Garden spans just under three hectares and is open to the public.
Gert Cornelius Nel was a South African botanist. His formal botanical author abbreviation is Nel.
Lithops karasmontana, is a species of flowering plant in the ice plant family Aizoaceae, native to Namibia and South Africa.
Lithops hookeri is a species of plant in the genus Lithops, in the family Aizoaceae. It is native to the Northern Cape province of South Africa.
Lithops amicorum is a small succulent plant with white flowers, one of the smallest in the genus. It was named for the group of four friends who discovered it. It was collected by Desmond T. and Naureen A. Cole on 3 May 2004. After recent molecular analysis it was recombined to be a subspecies of Lithops karasmontana rather than its own species.
Leaf window, also known as epidermal window, and fenestration, is a specialized leaf structure consisting of a translucent area through which light can enter the interior surfaces of the leaf where photosynthesis can occur. The translucent structure may include epidermal tissue, and in some succulent plants it consists of several cell layers of parenchyma, which may also function as water-storage tissue. It can appear as a large continuous patch, a variegated or reticulated region, or as numerous small spots. It is found in some succulent plants native to arid climates, allowing much of the plant to remain beneath the soil surface where it is protected from desiccation by winds and heat while optimizing light absorption. Many species featuring leaf windows are native to Southern Africa.
Lithops localis is a species of plant in the family Aizoaceae, indigenous to South Africa.
Lithops divergens is a succulent plant species in the genus Lithops of the family Aizoaceae. It is endemic to the western Cape Provinces of South Africa. It is able to withstand intense climatic changes due to its resilience as a succulent. The average annual rainfall for its natural environment is less than 150 mm, occurring primarily in winter which is unusual for a Lithops.
Lithops gracilidelineata is a species of the genus Lithops under the family Aizoaceae. The succulent plant lives in the southern region of Africa, and receives its name from the Latin words gracili and linea, combining to form the translation of "fine lined".
Lithops naureeniae is a species of pebble plant (Lithops), in the family Aizoaceae. It is native to the Northern Cape province of South Africa. The succulent is adapted to the desert climate in which it lives. L. naureeniae was identified in 1980 by Desmond Cole, who became involved in Lithops research in 1947, from a specimen provided to him by Bruce Bayer, curator of the Karoo Botanic Garden, having been collected by Peter V. Bruyns in Namaqualand. It is named after Cole's wife, Naureen Cole. Cole wrote:
I therefore have pleasure in dedicating it to the person who, during the last fifteen years, directly and indirectly, has contributed more to research on and knowledge of the genus Lithops than any other—my wife, Naureen
