Stapelia grandiflora

Stapelia grandiflora

Stapelia grandiflora, also called Aasblume, is a species of the subfamily of milkweed plants ( Asclepiadoideae ). It belongs to the Stapelia species with the largest flowers (diameter up to 22 cm). With the name Aasblume but other species of the genus Stapelia are called.

Features

It makes perennial, stem succulent, relatively large drives in compact growth forms. The shoots to 30 cm high, with a diameter of up to 3 cm. The tapered tip for flower stalk can be up to 7 cm long. He is thick to about 5 mm. The corolla is brownish and measures up to 22 cm in diameter. It is mostly flat to broadly funnel-shaped. The corolla-tube is short and narrow, and basal comprises the corona. The crown tip are up to 8.8 cm long and oval - pointed. The tips are often bent far to the outside and mostly bare. Outdoor sit fine downy hairs, inside central parts with shorter, the edges are covered with long, soft hairs. The corona is short-stalked. The interstaminalen corona lobes are 7-9 mm long. rounded - rectangular, and z.T. apically slightly widening. You are concave curved and are more or less upright. Apical they are slightly bent outwards and dentate or irregularly notched. The staminal corona lobes are brown, yellow often towards the tip, 6-11 mm long and erect. The stamens are colored orange to brownish. They measure 1 to 1.25 mm x 0.6 to 0.75 mm and are D-shaped. The fruits are usually solitary.

Dissemination

The species occurs in the arid regions of northern, western and Eastern Cape provinces and the Free State of South Africa. Due to the very eye-catching and large flowers she has become a very popular houseplant.

Mimesis

The flowers of Stapelia grandiflora off a penetrating smell of carrion, which attracts carrion flies ( mimesis ). They crawl so over stamens and Gymnostegium and fertilize the plant. The smell along with the flesh-colored surface led many fly even to lay their eggs on the flowers. The hatching larvae perish. The advantage is one-sided on the part of the plant.

Synonyms

The species was first described by Francis Masson 1797. Later, the species was described also under a number of other names:

  • Stapelia ambigua Masson
  • Stapelia ambigua var fulva Sweet
  • Stapelia grandiflora var lineata N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia obscura N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia desmetiana N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia desmetiana var apicalis N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia flavirostris N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia desmetiana var Pallisa N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia senilis N. E. Brown
  • Stapelia desmetiana var fergusoniae R. A. Dyer
Stapeliae
745811
de