Mimetes saxatilis E.Phillips

Erect shrub 1-2.2 m tall, with a single main trunk branching into several upright, rather sparsely branched stems. Branches 5-10 mm in diam., densely velutinous, later becoming glabrous and prominently marked with leaf scars. Leaves subpatent to loosely ascending imbricate, elliptic to broadly oval, 35-50 mm long, 17-30 mm wide; velutinous, later glabrescent, margins fimbriate; apices subacute, entire to tridentate. Inflorescence cylindric, 50-100 mm long, 50-60 mm wide, topped by an erect to suberect coma of green elliptic to oval leaves. Capitula 14-22-flowered, subtended by a flat, green undifferentiated foliage leaf. Outer involucral bracts loosely arranged, broadly lanceolate to ovate, acute, 10-25 mm long, 6-8 mm wide, glabrous but margins fimbriate; inner series narrowly lanceolate, 12-25 mm long, 2-5 mm wide. Floral bracts linear, acuminate, 12-22 mm long, 1-2 mm wide, margins very densely villous. Perianth 30-35 mm long, yellow; tube slightly inflated, glabrous, 2 mm long; claws filiform, sparsely villous; limbs linear-cymbiform, 5 mm long, glabrous or nearly glabrous with a few scattered hairs. Anthers sessile. Style slender, pale yellow terminally, 30-50 mm long, glabrous. Pollen presenter annulate at junction with style, becoming quadrangular-cylindric and then ovoid-acute terminally; stigmatic groove terminal. Ovary ovoid, minutely sericeous, 1 mm long. Hypogynous scales linear-subulate, 2 mm long. Fruits cylindric, 6-8 mm long, 3-4 mm wide. Flowering takes place between July and December, but is often very erratic, apparently being significantly influenced by rainfall. A rather low mean annual rainfall of about 400 mm is experienced in most parts of species' range. During very dry seasons when precipitation falls well below this figure, flowering is tardy, while in some instances the flowers may abort before opening. Late August is usually the peak of the flowering season and if average or above average winter rains have been experienced, profuse flowering usually follows. Ripe fruits are shed approximately nine months after flowering.