Pelargonium is a genus of flowering plants that includes about 280 species of perennials, succulents, and shrubs, commonly called geraniums, pelargoniums, or storksbills. Geranium is also the botanical name and common name of a separate genus of related plants, also known as cranesbills. Both genera belong to the family Geraniaceae, and Carl Linnaeus originally included all the species in one genus, Geranium; they were later separated into two genera by Charles Louis L'Héritier de Brutelle in 1789.
Pachypodium baronii, the Madagascar palm or bontaka, is a flowering plant in the family Apocynaceae. It has the habit of a robust shrub with a spherical or bottle-shaped trunk. It has several cylindrical branches at the top.
Pachypodium bicolor is a species of plant in the family Apocynaceae.
Pachypodium brevicaule is a species of plant that belongs to the family Apocynaceae.
Mimetes chrysanthus is an evergreen, upright shrub of 1½–2 m high that has been assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has green, slightly stalked oval leaves of 3–4½ cm (1.2–1.8 in) long and 1–1¾ cm (0.4–0.7 in) wide. The inflorescences are near the tip of the branches, cylinder-shaped and consist of 50–70 densely cropped flower heads, each in the axil of a green leaf, consisting of 25–35 golden yellow, faintly sweet scented flowers. It is endemic to the Fynbos ecoregion of South Africa and is found in two locations, in the Western Cape province. The flowering season is from March to May or June, but flower heads sometimes occur in any other part of the year.
Leucospermum cordifolium is an upright, evergreen shrub of up to 1½ m (5 ft) high from the Proteaceae. The flower heads are globe-shape with a flattened top, 10–12 cm (3.9–4.7 in) in diameter, and are carried individually or with two or three together mostly at a right angle to its branch. The perianth is 3–3½ cm long, yellow, orange or crimson in color. From each flower emerges a 4½–6 cm (1.8–2.4 in) long style sticking out horizontally but curving upwards near the obliquely, shell-shaped, thicker pollen presenter. This gives each head the appearance of a pincushion. Its common name is ornamental pincushion in English and bobbejaanklou in Afrikaans. It flowers between the middle of July and the end of November. It naturally occurs near the south coast of the Western Cape province of South Africa. Varieties and hybrids of this species are used as cut flower and garden plant.
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 vigorously from August to October.
Pelargonium cucullatum is a hairy, upright, branching, perennial shrub, of 1–2 m (3.3–6.6 ft) high, that has been assigned to the cranesbill family. It sprouts new stems from the underground rootstock and becomes woody at its base. It has alternately set, sometimes slightly succulent leaves crowded near the top of the branches, with leaf stalks and flat to hood-shaped leaf blades, with a rounded broad triangular to kidney-shaped outline of about 4–5.5 cm long and 5–9 cm wide, often somewhat incised, the margin with irregular teeth. The white to purplish red, 5-merous, somewhat mirror symmetrical flowers grow in umbel-like clusters, and each contain mostly 7 fertile stamens and 3 infertile staminodes of different length. P. cucullatum has been cultivated as a garden ornamental and house plant since the 17th century. It has been used to breed many modern pelargonium hybrids, notably the Regal pelargoniums. It is called hooded-leaf pelargonium or herba althaea in English and wildemalva in Afrikaans.
Leucospermum cuneiforme is an upright evergreen shrub with many pustules growing on the lower branches, wedge-shaped leaves, and oval, initially yellow flower heads that later turn orange, with long styles sticking far beyond the perianths, jointly giving the impression of a pincushion. It is called wart-stemmed pincushion in English and luisiesbos (lice-bush) in Afrikaans. The species is common in the southern mountains of South Africa.
Leucospermum saxosum is an upright evergreen shrub of up to 2 m (6.6 ft) high that is assigned to the family Proteaceae. It has lance-shaped, leathery leaves and egg-shaped flower heads of about 5 cm (2.0 in) in diameter, with initially yellow-orange flowers, later turning crimson, from which long styles stick out, giving the flower head the appearance of a pincushion. It is called escarpment pincushion in English. It grows on quartzite soils in the mountains on the Zimbabwe-Mozambique border and in eastern Transvaal.
Leucospermum lineare is an evergreen shrub with linear leaves and is assigned to the Proteaceae. There are two distinct forms that have not been formally recognized as separate taxa. There is an upright form with orange flower heads of up to 2 m (6.6 ft) high, and a sprawling form of 2–3 m (6.6–9.8 ft) in diameter with yellow flower heads. Its common name is needle-leaf pincushion, or narrow-leaf pincushion, in English and smalblaarspeldekussing in Afrikaans. The orange-flowered form is called tangerine pincushion or assegaaibos pincushion. Flowering occurs in the first half of the southern hemisphere season, but peaks in September and October. It is an endemic species that can only be found in the southwest of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Leucospermum pedunculatum is an evergreen, low shrub of 15–30 cm (5.9–11.8 in) 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.
Mimetes splendidus or splendid pagoda is an evergreen, rather sparsely branching, upright shrub of up to 2½ m (8 ft) high from the family Proteaceae. It has broadly lance-shaped to oval, silvery-hairy leaves with three or four teeth crowded at the tip. It has cylinder-shaped inflorescences that consists of many heads, each containing eleven to thirteen flowers, in the axils of the highest leaves. These leaves form a hood over a lower flowerhead and are flushed orangy pink. It flowers during winter, from early May to September. It is an endemic species that is restricted to the south face of the coastal mountains of the Western Cape province of South Africa.
Mairia crenata is a perennial herbaceous plant of mostly 2–15 cm (1–6 in) high that is assigned to the family Asteraceae. It has a woody rootstock of up to 5 cm (2 in) long, from which brown, fleshy roots develop. The five to eighteen, hard and leathery, spoon-shaped leaves are in one to three rosettes, have a distinct main vein, blunt or pointy tip, often dark red or blackish margins with rounded teeth and a 1⁄2–2 cm (0.2–0.8 in) long stalk-like foot, often initially somewhat woolly hairy, on particularly the lower surface and the main vein, but this is easily rubbed off the shiny surfaces. Each rosette produces mostly one, sometimes up to four, mostly rusty or whitish woolly hairy, brown or dark red inflorescence stalks, usually 1+1⁄2–15 cm long, each with two to eight, initially woolly, line-shaped to oval bracts, the lowest up to 3 cm (1.2 in), decreasing size further up, and carrying mostly one, rarely up to three flower heads. The flower heads have a bell-shaped involucre with about 40 bracts, sixteen to thirty three violet to white ray florets of about 1+1⁄4–1+7⁄8 cm long, and many yellow disc florets. The species flowers anywhere between February and December but only after a fire has destroyed the overhead biomass or serious disturbance. It is an endemic species that is restricted to the Eastern Cape and Western Cape provinces of South Africa.
Mairia coriacea is a perennial plant assigned to the family Asteraceae. It has broad, tough and leathery, evergreen leaves. These have a narrowed foot and an entire margin or a few shallow, irregular teeth. They grow in a rosette directly from the rootstock. The plant produces flower heads with one whorl of white to mauve ray florets around many yellow disc florets, with one or few on top of a dark reddish, woolly stalk. Flower heads appear after the overhead vegetation burnt down, often destroying the leaves in the process. It can be found in the southern mountains of South Africa's Western Cape province. It is called leather leaves in English.
Mairia petiolata is a tufted, variably hairy, perennial plant of up to 15 cm (6 in) assigned to the family Asteraceae. Its leaves are in a ground rosette, and have a stalk of mostly 2–5 cm long and an inverted egg-shaped to elliptic, 61⁄2–9 cm (2.6–4.6 in) long and 2–3 cm wide leaf blade, with a toothed margin. It mostly has two flower heads at the tip of the branches of each erect, dark reddish brown scape. The flower heads have a bell- to cup-shaped involucre that consists of 20–24, purplish, overlapping bracts in 3–4 whorls. These protect 12–16 pink, ray florets, surrounding many yellow disc florets. This species was only seen flowering once, in December. It is known from one location in the Langeberg, Western Cape province of South Africa.
Pelargonium coronopifolium is a subshrub of up to 40 cm high. It has green to slightly greyish, linear to narrowly elliptical leaves often with irregular teeth towards the tip and white to purple flowers in groups of one to four. It can be found in the Western Cape province of South Africa. Old publications suggested the name buck's horn plantain-leaved stork's bill, but this name never gained common use.
Otholobium dreweae is an upright shrublet assigned to the Pea family of about 15 cm (5.9 in) high, that appears after the vegetation burned down from the underground rootstock and forms mat-like clumps of hardly branching, leafy stems. The stems are set with stiff, entire, alternate leaves with a single leaflet and heads consisting of 12-18 initially dark pink, later white, pea-like flowers with a white nectar guide on a peduncle as long as the leaves at the end of the stem. This species is an endemic of the Kleinrivier Mountains in the Western Cape province of South Africa. It mostly flowers in November.
Otholobium lanceolatum is a small subshrub of up to 20 cm (7.9 in) high, that is assigned to the Pea family. It has up to 7 horizontal stems with raised tips, few hairless, alternately set leaves with only one leaflet and clusters of 15-27 white, pea-like flowers with a purple tip near the top of the short, seasonal shoots. It is endemic to one site near Caledon, South Africa. Flowers only appear in November and December within one year after a fire destroyed the vegetation.
Pelargonium triste, is a geophyte with flowering stems of about 25 cm (9.8 in) high on average, that is assigned to the Stork's bill family. It has hairy, divided and softly feathered leaves that are about twice as long as wide, resemble carrot leaves, and emerge from the tuberous rootstock directly at ground level. The bracts on the flowering stems are usually much smaller than the leaves at ground level. It carries inconspicuous, star-shaped flowers, each with a "spur" that is merged with the flower stalk, with five free green sepals, 5 pale yellow petals, 10 filaments, only 7 of them initially carrying an anther and a style with 5 curved branches. The flowers are crowded in umbels, and mostly there are slight to intense maroon to black markings that may be small or cover the entire petal except for a narrow line along the margins. In the evening, the flowers start to smell like cloves. Flowers may be found practically year round, but most proficiently from September to December. As typical for many species in the Stork's bill family, its fruits resemble the neck, head and bill of a stork. It is known as the night-scented pelargonium in English, kaneeltjie, pypkaneel or rooiwortel in Afrikaans and wit n/eitjie in the Khoi language.
