Freesia is a genus of herbaceous perennial flowering plants in the family Iridaceae, first described as a genus in 1866 by Christian Friedrich Ecklon (1886) and named after the German botanist and medical practitioner, Friedrich Freese (1795-1876). It is native to the eastern side of southern Africa, from Kenya south to South Africa, most species being found in Cape Provinces. Species of the former genus Anomatheca are now included in Freesia. The plants commonly known as "freesias", with fragrant funnel-shaped flowers, are cultivated hybrids of a number of Freesia species. Some other species are also grown as ornamental plants.
Freesia laxa, commonly known as flowering grass, is a small species of cormous flowering plant in the family Iridaceae, from eastern and southern Africa, from Kenya to northeastern South Africa. It is grown in gardens as an ornamental plant.
Lycaste, abbreviated as Lyc in horticultural trade, is a genus of orchids that contains about 30 species with egg-shaped pseudobulbs and thin, plicate (pleated) leaves.
Dactylorhiza incarnata, the early marsh-orchid, is a perennial, temperate-climate species of orchid generally found growing in wet meadows, and generally on base-rich soils, up to about 2100m asl. The species occurs widely in Europe and Asia from Portugal and Ireland east to Siberia and Xinjiang.
Lomatia hirsuta, known as radal, is a tree native to Argentina, Chile, and Peru.
Leucospermum erubescens is an evergreen shrub of up to 2 m high, with hairless, lancet-shaped to oval leaves with three to seven teeth near the tip of 7–8½ cm long and 1–2 cm wide, slightly asymmetric, oval flower heads of 5–6½ cm in diameter, and usually with four to eight clustered near the end of the branches, with initially yellow flowers, that change to deep crimson, from which long styles stick out, giving the flowerhead as a whole the appearance of a pincushion. It is called orange flame pincushion in English and oranjevlamspeldekussing in Afrikaans. It can be found in South Africa. Flowers may be found between August and January.
Leucospermum praemorsum is an evergreen shrub or small tree of up to 5 m (16 ft) high. It has hairless oblong to inverted lance-shaped leaves of 7–8 cm long and 1½–2 cm wide, tapering at their base to a stalk of up to 2 cm long, and cut-off at the tip with three to five teeth, and pale carmine, inverted cone-shaped flower heads. From the center of the flowers emerge long initially orange, later deep crimson styles that jointly give the impression of a pincushion. It is called Nardouw fountain-pincushion or Nardouw pincushion in English and Nardouwluisiesbos in Afrikaans. Flower heads can be found off and on throughout the year, particularly in older plants, with a peak between July and December. It is an endemic species that can only be found in part of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum heterophyllum is a low, trailing evergreen shrublet of up to 15 cm (6 in) high, and up to several m in diameter, which is assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has narrow leaves of about 2½ cm (1 in) long and ½ cm (0.2 in) wide, mostly with three teeth near its tip. It has small, globe-shaped, whitish flower heads. It is called trident pincushion in English and rankluisie in Afrikaans. It naturally occurs in the Western Cape province of South Africa. The plant flowers between August and January.
Leucospermum cordatum is an evergreen, creeping shrublet of about 20 cm (8 in) high from the family Proteaceae. It has pale cream flower heads, from which pink flushed styles emerge, the whole reminiscent of a pincushion. Its common name is heart-leaf pincushion in English. It flowers between July and December but the peak of the flowering period is from September to November. It is an endemic species, that is only known from two locations close to each other in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum grandiflorum is an evergreen, upright shrub of up to 2½ m high that is assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has elliptic, greyish green, softly hairy leaves and initially egg-shaped heads with yellow flowers, later flatter with flowers turning orange. From the center of each flower emerges a long pale yellow style with a pink thickened tip that is bent slightly clockwise, giving the entire head the appearance of a pincushion. Its flowers can be found between July and December. It is called grey-leaf fountain-pincushion or rainbow pincushion in English. L. grandiflorum is an endemic species that can only be found in nature in the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum catherinae is a large evergreen, upright shrub of up to 4 m (13 ft) high from the family Proteaceae. It has hairless, inverted lance-shaped 9–13 cm long and 1–2½ cm wide leaves with a distinct stalk and three or four deep and blunt teeth toward the tip. The flower heads become disc-shaped with age, about 15 cm (6 in) in diameter, consisting of pale orange flowers. From the center of each flower emerges a long initially orange, later coppery bronze style with a thickened magenta tip that is bent clockwise, giving the entire head the appearance of a whirling pincushion. It is called Catherine-wheel pincushion or wheel flower in English and waterluisie in Afrikaans. Flowers can be found between September and December. It is an endemic species limited to the southwest of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum formosum is a large upright shrub of up to 3 m (10 ft) high, from the family Proteaceae. It grows from a single trunk and its branches are greyish felty. The softly felty leaves are lance-shaped to elliptic, 6½–10 cm long and 14–20 mm (0.56–0.80 in) wide. The flower heads are flattened and about 15 cm (6 in) across, and consist of bright yellow flowers from which long, styles emerge which are strongly clockwise bent just below the white, later pink thickened tip. From above, the heads look like turning wheels. It is called silver-leaf wheel-pincushion in English. It flowers during September and October. It is an endemic species of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum innovans is an upright evergreen shrub with many pustules growing on the lower branches, wedge-shaped leaves, and oval, flower heads that are yellow on the outside, but with scarlet stripes on the inside of the perianth claws, with long styles sticking far beyond the perianths, jointly giving the impression of a pincushion. It is called Pondoland pincushion or Transkei pincushion in English. Flowers occur on and off between July and December, but flowering peaks in September and October.
Leucospermum pluridens is a large upright evergreen shrub of up to 3 m (10 ft) high assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has leathery, oblong to wedge-shaped leaves of about 7½ cm long and 2½ cm wide, deeply incised near the tip with seven to ten teeth. It has initially yellow, later carmine coloured flower heads. The 2 cm long bracts have slender, recurved tips. From the center of the perianth emerge long styles that jointly give the impression of a pincushion. It is called Robinson pincushion in English and Robinson-kreupelhout in Afrikaans. Flowers can be found between September and December. It naturally occurs in the south of South Africa.
Leucospermum pedunculatum is an evergreen, low shrub of 15–30 cm (½–1 ft) high spreading from a single stern upright stem, from the family Proteaceae. The powdered or hairless line-shaped to somewhat sickle-shaped leaves are 3–6 cm (1.2–2.4 in) long and 2–5 mm (0.08–0.20 in) wide. The stalked, individually set flower heads are globe-shaped, 2½−3 cm in diameter consist of initially white to pale cream flowers that eventually turn carmine. From the center of the flowers emerge straight styles that jointly give the impression of a pincushion. It is called white-trailing pincushion in English. It flowers from August to January, peaking in September. It is an endemic species that is restricted to a narrow strip on the south coast of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum rodolentum is an upright, evergreen shrub of up to 3.0 m high, from the family Proteaceae. It has felty grey, elliptic to wedge-shaped leaves of 4–6½ cm (1.8–2.6 in) long and ¾–1½ cm wide, and very sweetly scented, globe-shaped, 3–3½ cm (1.2–1.4 in) wide, bright yellow flower heads, that are seated or on a very short stalk of ½ cm long, grouped with two to four together. Its common names include is sandveld pincushion in English and sandluisie or sandveldluisiesbos in Afrikaans. The plants are in bloom between August and November. It is an endemic species that only grows in a small area of the Western Cape province of South-Africa.
Vexatorella amoena, also known as the Swartruggens vexator is an evergreen shrub of up to about 1 m (3 ft) high, that is assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has entire, inverted egg-shaped, bluish grey, leathery leaves of 1½–3 cm (0.6–1.2 in) long and 5–11 mm (0.20–0.45 in) wide on a distinct stalk, and globular flower heads of about 2 cm (0.8 in) across with pale pink flowers with extended, thick-tipped styles at the tip of the branches. The plants are flowering from September to November. It is an endemic species that is restricted to the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Vexatorella obtusata is an evergreen shrub, with narrow, leathery leaves and about 2 cm big, globular flowerheads consisting of well scented, creamy pink flowers, from which a long style with a thickened tip extends. Two subspecies are distinguished, both restricted to different parts of the Western Cape province of South Africa. The creeping V. obtusata subsp. obtusata, also known as the Montagu vexator flowers from September to December, and the upright V. obtusata subsp. albomontana, also known as the Witteberg vexator, that has flowers between August and November.
Mimetes stokoei, the mace pagoda, is an evergreen, upright, hardly branching, large shrub of 1–2 m high in the family Proteaceae. It has silvery, oval leaves of 5–8 cm (2.0–3.2 in) long and 2 1⁄2–4 cm (1.0–1.6 in) wide, with one large tooth supported by two smaller teeth near the tip, at an upward angle and somewhat overlapping each other. The inflorescences are set just below the growing tip, are cylinder-shaped, 10–12 cm (4–5 in) high, topped by a crest of small, more or less horizontal, pinkish-purple tinged leaves. It consists of several flower heads in the axils of golden leaves with a pinkish wash that form a hood shielding the underlying flower head. Each flower head contains eight to twelve individual flowers, with amber-colored styles topped by blackish purple pollen presenters and grey silky perianth lobes. It is endemic to the Fynbos ecoregion of South Africa, being confined to the Kogelberg mountain range. The mace pagoda was twice presumed extinct, but reappeared in its natural habitat from seed, after a wildfire several decades later.
Mimetes argenteus is an evergreen, upright, hardly branching, large shrub of about 2 m high in the family Proteaceae. It has elliptic, silvery leaves, due to a dense covering of silky hairs, that stand out a right angle from the branches. It has cylindric inflorescences of 8–15 cm (3–6 in) long and 10–12 cm (4–5 in) in diameter, crested by smaller silvery pink leaves at an upright angle. These consist of many flower heads, each containing six to nine individual flowers and ar set in the axil of a leaf flushed mauve to carmine. It flowers from March to June. The silver pagoda naturally occurs in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It is called silver pagoda or silver-leaved bottlebrush in English and vaalstompie in Afrikaans.
