Manulea karrooica Hilliard

Annual herb, stems several tufted from base, erect to 40-130 mm, simple, minutely glandular-puberulous with almost sessile balloon-tipped hairs as well. Leaves opposite and decussate, bases connate, crowded at base of plant, blade up to 7-15 x 3-10 mm, elliptic or oblanceolate tapering into a petiolar part about equalling the blade, margins subentire to distinctly toothed, both surfaces glandular-puberulous. Flowers many in simple terminal racemes, distant. Bracts (lowermost) 2 x 0.5 mm, smaller upwards, lanceolate, glandular-puberulous on margins only, occasional ± sessile balloon-tipped hairs on back. Pedicels (lowermost) 2.5-5 mm long, shorter upwards. Calyx obscurely bilabiate, tube 0.2-0.3 mm long, anticous lobes 2-3 x 0.4-0.8 mm, posticous ones slightly smaller, oblong, tips subspathulate or not, margins minutely glandular-puberulous, occasional ± sessile balloon-tipped hairs on backs. Corolla tube 2.3-3.5 x 0.8-1.3 mm in throat, ± funnel-shaped, limb 4-6 mm across lateral lobes, these ascending, the anticous lobe thus isolated from the other four, posticous lobes 1.2-2.5 x 0.6-1.3 mm, anticous lobe 1.5-2.8 x 0.8-1.7 mm, all lanceolate-oblong, subacute, cream to pale sulphur yellow, tube with very few ± sessile balloon-tipped hairs, these more plentiful on backs of lobes, inside a longitudinal posticous band of clavate hairs running out onto lower part of posticous lip and extending to lateral lobes or right round mouth. Stamens 4, anticous anthers 0.25-0.5 mm long, visible in mouth or very shortly exserted, posticous anthers 0.4-0.6 mm long, included or tips just visible in mouth, posticous filaments glabrous. Stigma 2-3 mm long, well exserted. Style 0.4-1.5 mm long. Ovary 1.2-1.5 x 0.8-lmm, subrotund. Capsules 34 x 2 mm. Seeds c. 0.5 x 0.3 mm, white.