Ceropegia Linné
For an overview of the Genus go to Ceropegia a-d
A tuberous rooted species from KwaZulu-Natal of which the clone pictured is a dwarf form, having a mass of very short stems on which are borne a profusion of flowers over a long period.
Found in moist shady forested areas of Madagascar this delicate tuberous rooted species is rare in cultivation and is probably its closest relative is Ceropegia madagascariensis.
Ceropegia linearis ssp debilis, and, ssp woodii
Originally described from material collected in KwaZulu-Natal, the tuberous rooted linearis group with its creeping or pendant floriferous stems is thought to be a complex 'collective' species comprising numerous local forms within the subspecies, which can also be found in Kenya, Zimbabwe, Malawi, Mozambique and Swaziland. ssp debilis from Malawi is thought to be merely a form or variety of the variable ssp woodii.
Collected by Mrs. Lugard on the Kwebe Hills in Botswana, it has a wide distribution also in Angola, Namibia, Kenya, Tanzania, Mozambique, Zimbabwe and the Northern Province of South Africa. This extremely variable species is closely related to Ceropegia distincta, from which it differs in having fleshy fusiform roots. The stems which are persistent and robust both climb and twine and flower of a long period. This species is sometimes seen with the alternative spelling C. lugardiae.
Ceropegia multiflora ssp. tentaculata
This tuberous rooted species from Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and the Northern Province of South Africa differs from ssp multiflora in having free and spreading lobes as the name implies. This species is free flowering from its twining annual stems.
The type locality for this species is Sudan, but it can be found all over tropical and sub tropical Africa from Senegal to RSA. The plant shown from KwaZulu-Natal was originally obtained as Ceropegia grandis but this has since been sunk into Ceropegia nilotica. The plant shown from Kenya was grown from IAS seed IAS1506 collected by Maria Dodds in Rumuruti in 2001. The species is very closely related to Ceropegia denticulata from which it differs in its lack of long vibratile hairs at the tips of the corona lobes.
For a long time it was thought that this rare species only occurred in the Worcester district of the Western Cape Province of South Africa, near Tweefontein, but recent discoveries have widened the distribution area to include Robertson, Ouberg and the Portjeskloof Dam areas. This globose tuberous rooted species with twining or creeping stems forms part of the Ceropegia linearis 'complex'.
Also forming part of the C. linearis 'complex', this species with a flattened tuber can be found in Mozambique, Namibia, Botswana, Zimbabwe and South Africa (with the exception of the Western Cape Province). The species is usually free flowering although the flowers being greenish in colour are rather inconspicuous.
The coronal structure of this tuberous rooted species, with fissured bark is extremely variable. The plant shown was grown from seed, IAS1553 collected by Rev. Stewart Lane in Limbe, Malawi in 2002, and flowered in its first year. The species can also be found in Zaire, Zambia, and Tanzania.
From the Toliara district of southern Madagascar, this creeping succulent species bears its flowers on thin twining stems which can reach several metres in length. As with most Madagascan species it benefits from extra warmth in winter.
Yet another member of the C. linearis 'complex', this species has a flattened tuber with soft delicate bark and annual twining stems with elliptic leaves, and again comes from the area of Angola, Namibia, Botswana, Zaire, Zimbabwe, and Tanzania.