Pteronia pallens

Pteronia pallens ("Scholtzbos" or "Aasvoëlbos / Witbas") is a species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, indigenous to the Karoo regions of South Africa. Its natural habitat is dry, rocky slopes. It often cooccurs with its close relatives, Pteronia paniculata or Pteronia incana.[1]

Pteronia pallens
Scientific classification
Kingdom:
Plantae
(unranked):
Angiosperms
(unranked):
Eudicots
(unranked):
Asterids
Order:
Asterales
Family:
Asteraceae
Tribe:
Astereae
Genus:
Pteronia
Species:
P. pallens
Binomial name
Pteronia pallens
L.f.

Description
The tip of each Pteronia pallens stem produces only 1-3 rounded flower-heads.

A small shrub with pale woody stem. The leaves are slender, blunt-ended, channeled and green.

One to three rounded, discoid flower heads appear at the tips of the branches. This helps to distinguish it from the otherwise similar species Pteronia paniculata.[2][3]

Distribution

This species occurs in the western Little Karoo, the western Great Karoo and into the Northern Cape Province.

It usually grows on lower slopes on silt or sand that is often calciferous (often overlying calcrete).

References
  1. "Threatened Species Programme - SANBI Red List of South African Plants". redlist.sanbi.org.
  2. J.Vlok & A.Schutte-Vlok (2010) Plants of the Klein Karoo. Umdaus, Hatfield.
  3. "Operation Wildflower - rescuing indigenous vegetation - Category: Pteronia - Image: Pteronia pallens". www.operationwildflower.org.za.


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