Monsonia angustifolia E.Mey.

Single-or multi-stemmed erect or decumbent annual 15-50 cm high. Stems herbaceous or sometimes semi-succulent, 3 to about 45 em long, 1-5 mm in diam., mostly reddish-or purplish-tinged, with a double indumentum the first of which is composed of a pubescence of curved hairs and the second of long straight erect often gland-based hairs which may be few or many, with few to numerous sessile and stalked glands. Leaves: lower alternate, upper subopposite or opposite; those of a pair unequal; the smaller with lateral branches and/or inflorescences in the axil; petiole with the same indumentum and glands as the stem, 0.2-0.6 x as long as the blade, 5-25 mm long, rarely geniculate at the apex and mostly flattened al the base; stipules subulate or acicular, 2-10 mm long, mostly straw-coloured and often subspinescent, with the same indumentum and glands as the stem or with a single indumentum of short hairs which may be curved or straight and erect; blade linear, narrowly elliptic, or narrowly ovate, 2.5-11 x as long as wide, 8-55 x 2-15 mm, emarginate and mucronate or rarely obtuse and 3-toothed at the apex, obtuse to cuneate or less often truncate at the base, sinuate and serrate, 10 above glabrous, granulate and/or with scattered curved hairs, often with sessile glands, beneath glabrous or granulate, with curved hairs and curved stalked glands on the main veins or rarely on these veins with the double indumentum and glands of the stem, rarely glandular-punctate on both sides; veins pinnate, prominent beneath. Inflorescence lateral, axillary or not, 1-3-flowered, 15-60 mm long. Peduncles and pedicels slender, with the same indumentum and glands as the stem and the pedicels, furthermore, with the stalked glands conspicuous. Peduncles often obsolete, when present 0.1-1.1 x as long as the pedicels, up to 25 mm long, pedicels 5-55 mm long and geniculate under the fruit. Involucral bracts 1-3 per flower. Sepals green, free, narrowly ovate to ovate or narrowly obovate to obovate, 2-4 x as long as wide, 5-10 x 1.5-3 mm, outside with the same indumentum as the stem, with numerous sessile and stalked glands, and, furthermore, with the long hairs more conspicuous than on the stem, inside glabrous, sometimes with 3 parallel main veins; margin ciliate; mucro 0.7-2.5 mm long, terete, dark brown to purplish, straight or frequently curved, with a few scattered short and/or long hairs. Petals narrowly obtriangular to obtriangular, 1.8-3 x as long as wide, 5-15 x 3-6mm, 1-1.6 x as long as the sepals, 1-2 x as long as the stamens, white, mauve, pink, blue, purplish, or rarely yellow, glabrous on both sides; venation mostly dark-blue or greyish and with 5 main veins; base winged and obscurely ciliate; apex obscurely 3-lobed, sinuate, or rarely emarginate. Stamens monadelphous, arranged in a cup-shaped column around the pistil; groups basally connate for 0.5-2 mm; filaments of each group basally connate for 1-3 mm; filaments in the central stamens 5-
 and in the lateral 4-5 mm long, all terete towards the apex, glabrous; a triangular or ovate, mostly obscure gland-cavity is situated on the outer side of the base of each group; the gland cavities mostly with 2 parallel, vertical rims; anthers elliptic to broadly elliptic, 0.5-1 x 0.5-1 mm, subintrorse. Pistil 4-6 mm long; ovary broadly obovoid, 1.5 x 1.5 mm, hirto-pubescent; beak also hirto-pubescent, 1.5-2 mm long and longitudinally grooved; stigmas linear or clavate, 1-2 x 0.3 mm, outside obscurely pubescent and reddish to purplish, apex acute or obtuse, margin entire to subentire. Fruit 45-95 mm long; mericarps 9-12 x 1.5-2 mm and beak 35-85 mm long; mericarps narrowly obconical, hirsute, rimmed and ridged at the apex; the rim and ridge prominent and sharp-edged, perpendicular to the tailor oblique; the tail hirsute outside, hispid inside where the tails detach from the beak-axis; these stiff hairs whitish or copper-coloured, and long at the tail's base, forming a crest. Seed narrowly obovoid, 4-5 x 1-1.5 mm, glabrous. In both hemispheres the main flowering and fruiting periods occur in late summer and autumn, but in more tropical regions such plants could be found in any month of the year.

It is a subtropical plant. It grows in hot arid places. It grows in well-drained soil. It grows between 800-2,300 m above sea level. It can grow in arid places.

The seeds are added to maize porridge. They are also used in beers.