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August 26, 2006 : Orbea variegata
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Keywords: Apocynaceae | Orbea variegata (L.) Haw. | cultivated in Abbotsford, British Columbia
A thank you to sandy130 @ UBC Botanical Garden Forums from Abbotsford, BC for sharing today's image of the (inaptly-named) toad cactus or star cactus (it's not a cactus!). A better common name in use is African carrion flower. Check out the discussion thread to see a second photograph and the ensuing discussion. Much appreciated, sandy130!
Formerly placed in the genus Stapelia (an example), Orbea was resegregated as its own genus by Leach in this paper: Leach, LC. 1978. A contribution towards a new classification of Stapelieae (Asclepiadaceae) with a preliminary review of Orbea Haw., and descriptions of three new genera. Excelsa Taxonomic Series, No. 1. Aloe, Cactus and Succulent Society, Rhodesia.
Stoffel Petrus Bester of the South Africa National Herbarium has written an excellent summary of the genus Orbea, so I'll kindly ask you visit that site for more information about Orbea variegata and its relatives.
I'll also add that this species is an exotic invasive in South Australia. See: Dunbar, KR and Facelli, JM. 1999. The impact of a novel invasive species, Orbea variegata (African carrion flower), on the chenopod shrublands of South Australia. Journal of Arid Environments. 41(1): 37-48.
Photography resource link: for inspiration, the alpine photography of Jack Brauer. Locales photographed include Turkey and Patagonia.
Posted by Daniel Mosquin at August 26, 2006 12:00 AM
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Comments
Posted by: Beverley at August 26, 2006 5:08 AM
Nice sharp close-up of this flower. Orbea, eh? Hmmm.
Posted by: van at August 26, 2006 6:52 PM
Got one of these flowers given to me here in
South Texas (USA) area. This person has a plant and was blooming. Very unusual I might say. Asked her to give me a cutting.
Posted by: deb at July 4, 2007 7:48 AM
I have had one of these plants for four years and have been trying to find out exactly what it is. It has bloomed every year since I received it as a cutting. This fall a pod-like 'bloom' has replaced the flower. It looks like a bean pod, about 8 inches long and tapered. It has a seam running from top to bottom. Can anyone tell me what this is? A second 'pod' about 3 inches long has started as well, though at this time it looks quite different than the first.
Posted by: Jacki at October 29, 2007 11:12 PM
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Orbea variegata - Z9 - RHS Index of Garden Plants, Griffiths