Monsonia praemorsa E.Mey.

Species

Angiosperms > Geraniales > Geraniaceae > Monsonia

Characteristics

Erect, rarely decumbent, suffrutescent, few-to several-stemmed, 10-30 cm high. Roots up to 7 mm in diam., sometimes tuberous and then thicker.. Stems herbaceous to woody, up to approximately 25 cm long, 1-3 mm m diam., with a double indumentum the first of which is puberulent with curved hairs, and the second hispid or rarely velutinous with gland-based hyaline or copper-coloured hairs, with numerous sessile glands. Leaves alternate at the base of the main stems, but subopposite to opposite towards their apices and on the lateral branches, those of a pair often unequal, the smaller leaves with lateral branches and/or inflorescences in the axil; petiole with the same indumentum and glands as the stem, 0.2-0.7 x as long as the blade, 7-20 mm long, often flattened at the base, mostly geniculate at the apex; stipules subulate, with the same indumentum and glands as the stem, 4-16 mm long, mostly reddish; blade very narrowly elliptic, narrowly elliptic, or elliptic (exceptionally narrowly obovate or narrowly ovate), 1.5-4.5(6.3) x as long as wide, mostly folded upwards along the midrib, 20-45 x 5-20 mm; obtuse or emarginate, mucronate or 3-toothed at the apex; truncate or rarely cuneate at the base; serrate and mostly with short stiff hairs at the margin; globular pockets with resinous granules sometimes present on the teeth; above glabrous to granulose and with scattered stiff hairs; beneath with the double indumentum of the stem or with only one of both indumenta on the main veins, granulose with scattered long and/or short hairs between the veins, with sessile glands; main veins pinnate, impressed above, prominent beneath. Inflorescences lateral, leaf-opposed or axillary, 1-2-flowered, (34)50-110 mm long. Peduncles and pedicels slender, with the double indumentum of the stem and, furthermore, sometimes also with obscure to conspicuous stalked glands; peduncles (0.6)1-2.5 x as long as the pedicels, 15-60 mm long; pedicels (10)20-35 mm long, geniculate under the fruit; involucral bracts 2-3 per flower, subulate, with long and short stiff erect hairs. Sepals green, free, ovate, narrowly ovate, narrowly obovate, or narrowly elliptic,2.5-3 x as long as wide, 10-12 x 3-5 mm, outside velutinous or with a double indumentum the first of which is as above and the second is composed of short curved hairs, with numerous stalked and/or sessile glands, inside glabrous, or with stalked and/or sessile glands, with 3 parallel main veins, with ciliate margin, with mucro terete, 1-4 mm long, sometimes curved, greenish to reddish, with scattered long and short hairs, with a globular pocket of white, resinous granules at the base. Petals obtriangular, 1-1.5 x as long as wide, 20-25 x 15-20mm, 1.8-2.2 x as long as the sepals, 1.5-3 x as long as the stamens, white or creamy, venation bluish-grey to purplish, with 5 main veins, outside glabrous or rarely with stalked glands, inside obscurely villose, winged, mostly obscurely ciliate and often also hairy at the base, obscurely lobed Or crenate at the apex. Stamens monadelphous; groups basally connate for 1-2 mm; filaments of each group basally connate for 1-2.5 mm; filaments in the central stamens 8-11 mm and in the lateral 6-8 mm long, mostly terete and reflexed at the apex, glabrous inside, glabrous or hairy outside; a rimmed, mostly obscure gland cavity is situated on the outer side of the base of each group; anthers oblong, those of the long filaments slightly larger, 2.5-4 x 1-2 mm, subintrorse. Pistil 9-12 mm long; ovary obovoid to broadly obovoid, 2-3 x 2 mm, hyaline-hirto-pubescent; beak longitudinally 5-lobed, 5-6 mm long, pubescent or sometimes lanulose at the base, with stalked glands; stigmas linear or clavate, 2-4 x 0.4-0.6 mm, outside hairy and greenish to maroon, entire or obscurely crenate at the margin, obtuse or acute at the apex. Fruit 60-75 mm long; mericarps 13-15 x 1.7-1.  and beak 50-6  long; mericarps hirsute, narrowly and obliquely obovoid, rimmed and obliquely domed or ridged at the apex, with the dome or ridge hirsute, hirsute outside, hispid inside where the tail detaches from the beak-axis; these stiff hairs copper-coloured, and long at the tail's base, forming a crest. Seed narrowly obovoid, 3-5 x 1-2 mm, glabrous.
Life form annual
Growth form herb
Growth support free-standing
Foliage retention -
Sexuality hermaphrodite
Pollination -
Spread -
Mature width (meter) -
Mature height (meter) 0.1 - 0.3
Root system -
Rooting depth (meter) -
Root diameter (meter) -
Flower color
Blooming months -
Fruit color
Fruiting months -
Nitrogen fixer -
Photosynthetic pathway -

Environment

Light -
Soil humidity -
Soil texture 5-6
Soil acidity -
Soil nutriment -
Hardiness (USDA) -

Usage

Uses -
Edible -
Therapeutic use -
Human toxicity -
Animal toxicity -

Cultivation

Mode -
Germination duration (days) -
Germination temperacture (C°) -
Germination luminosity -
Germination treatment -
Minimum temperature (C°) -
Optimum temperature (C°) -
Size -
Vigor -
Productivity -

Distribution

Monsonia praemorsa world distribution map, present in South Africa

Identifiers

LSID urn:lsid:ipni.org:names:374550-1
WFO ID wfo-0001064104
COL ID 449ZS
BDTFX ID -
INPN ID -
Wikipedia (EN)
Wikipedia (FR)

Synonyms

Monsonia arabica Monsonia praemorsa Monsonia senecioides