Operation Wildflower
  • Home
  • Albums
  • Links
    • Botanical Gardens
    • OWF Sites
    • Public Parks, Gardens and Reserves
    • Reference Sites
    • Private Parks, Gardens and Reserves
  • Information
    • About Us
    • Articles
    • Contact Us
    • Disclaimer
    • Glossary
    • Plant Records
      • Aloes
      • Bulbs
      • Climbers
      • Cycads
      • Euphorbias
      • Ferns
      • Grasses
      • Herbs
      • Orchids
      • Parasites
      • Shrubs
      • Succulents
      • Trees
    • Sources of Information
    • Subject Index
Home Home » TYPES » Shrubs » Cyclopia subternata
Back to Category Overview
Total images in all categories: 12,081
Total number of hits on all images: 7,379,156

Cyclopia subternata

Cyclopia subternata
Start View full size
[Please activate JavaScript in order to see the slideshow]
Previous Previous
Image 94 of 507  
Next Next
Image 96 of 507  
  • Cullumia aculeata
  • Cullumia aculeata leaves
  • Cullumia aculeata old flowerhead holding the fruit
  • Cycas thouarsii
  • Cyclopia genistoides
  • Cyclopia meyeriana
  • Cyclopia meyeriana fruit pods
  • Cyclopia meyeriana leaves
  • Cyclopia subternata
  • Cymbopappus adenosolen
  • Dermatobotrys saundersii
  • Dianthus  micropetalus
  • Dianthus  micropetalus, locally known as grashout
  • Diastella divaricata subsp. divaricata
  • Diastella divaricata subsp. divaricata
  • Diastella divaricata subsp. divaricata
  • Diastella proteoides

Image information

Description

Cyclopia subternata is one of about 24 species of the genus Cyclopia that comprise the honey-bushes. They form part of the Fabaceae or legume family of pod bearing plants like peas and beans. C. subternata is known as vleitee (marshland tea), bossiestee (Afrikaans for shrublet tea), heuningbostee (Afrikaans for honey bush tea) or valley tea.

The C. subternata shrubs reach about 1 m in height. The leaves are three-foliolate, hairless, blue-green and lanceolate. The deep yellow flowers age to an orange or tan colour. Blooming happens in September.

The honey-bush tea species are all endemic in fairly small areas of the Western or Eastern Cape. About five of the species including C. subternata are used locally to make the traditional honey-bush teas that are increasingly popular among South Africans. C. subternata is distributed along coastal mountain ranges from the Langeberg to the Tsitsikamma in the southern Cape.

The habitat is full sun on sour fynbos slopes around sandstone seeps in high rainfall conditions. Overharvesting is damaging the natural populations bu commercial planting is on the increase in the region. The species does not resprout, therefore vulnerable to overharvesting. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Manning, 2007; Moriarty, 1982; http://redlist.sanbi.org).

Hits
624
Photographer
Johan Wentzel
Author
Ivan Latti
 
Back to Category Overview
Powered by JoomGallery