6787.000 Gomphocarpus R. Br.

Goyder, D.J. & Nicholas, A. (2001) A revision of Gomphocarpus R. Br. Kew Bulletin 56 769-836

Description of the genus

Short-lived perennial sub-shrubs or pyrophytic herbs. Rootstock usually a fibrous tap root, never tuberous. Latex white. Leaves generally opposite. Inflorescences consisting of extra-axillary nodding umbels. Corolla lobes spreading or reflexed, commonly with a line of long white hairs along the right margin. Corona with 5 well-developed cucullate lobes. Pollinia flattened. Stigma head flat. Follicles generally 1, inflated (in ours). Seeds with a tuft of hairs. Closely related to Asclepias.

Worldwide: 20 species, native to drier parts of Africa and neighbouring parts of Arabia, Sinai, Israel and Jordan

Malawi: 4 taxa.

Gomphocarpus fruticosus subsp. fruticosus

Links to taxa:     View: living plant images - herbarium specimen images - all images for this genus

SpeciesFZ divisionsContent
fruticosus (L.) W.T. Aiton subsp. fruticosus SDescription, Image
glaucophyllus Schltr.N,CDescription, Image
praticolus (S. Moore) Goyder & NicholasNImage
swynnertonii (S. Moore) Goyder & NicholasDescription, Image

Other sources of information about Gomphocarpus:

Our websites:

Flora of Botswana: Gomphocarpus
Flora of Burundi: Gomphocarpus
Flora of Caprivi: Gomphocarpus
Flora of Mozambique: Gomphocarpus
Flora of Zambia: Gomphocarpus
Flora of Zimbabwe: Gomphocarpus
Flora of Zimbabwe: cultivated Gomphocarpus

External websites:

African Plants: A Photo Guide (Senckenberg): Gomphocarpus
BHL (Biodiversity Heritage Library): Gomphocarpus
EOL (Encyclopedia of Life): Gomphocarpus
GBIF (Global Biodiversity Information Facility): Gomphocarpus
Google: Web - Images - Scholar
iNaturalist: Gomphocarpus
IPNI (International Plant Names Index): Gomphocarpus
JSTOR Plant Science: Gomphocarpus
Mansfeld World Database of Agricultural and Horticultural Crops: Gomphocarpus
Plants of the World Online: Gomphocarpus
Tropicos: Gomphocarpus
Wikipedia: Gomphocarpus

Copyright: Mark Hyde, Bart Wursten, Petra Ballings and Meg Coates Palgrave, 2014-24

Hyde, M.A., Wursten, B.T., Ballings, P. & Coates Palgrave, M. (2024). Flora of Malawi: Genus page: Gomphocarpus.
https://www.malawiflora.com/speciesdata/genus.php?genus_id=1136, retrieved 14 December 2024

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