Haworthia dimorpha-aff-kunje Select and click for a larger image. |
Distribution: | Africa: South Africa: Western Cape: |
Haworthia aff. dimorpha/nortieri - Mini article by Gerhard Marx. Kunje, S/E Citrusdal (GM 665), On the farm Kunje, south-east of Citrusdal occurs what seems to be a rather distinct Haworthia and its current inclusion as just a form of Haworthia nortieri may need reconsideration. In more than one article Bayer has been mentioning the old report of ‘Haworthia marumiana var dimorpha’ occurring in the Elandskloof area south-east of Citrusdal. Some years ago the German couple Muller-Doblies encountered these plants very near Elandskloof on the farm Kunje. The plants do look very similar to Haworthia dimorpha and also grows amongst lichens in rock crevices like the latter. Both are characterised by having oval to rounded pellucid windows on the upper and lower leaf surfaces and both have the strange characteristic of being generally green in the wild while turning dark green to red-brown in cultivation. The flowers and flowering time do differ between the two and the Kunje plants have a greater tendency to form offsets which is very rarely found in Haworthia dimorpha. Flowering for the Kunje plants occurs during November and December while Haworthia dimorpha flowers during February and March. The flowers of the Kunje plants have narrower perianth tubes and the upper lobes are curved upwards near the tips while they remain straight in Haworthia dimorpha. The flowers of Haworthia nortieri is characterised by being yellow on the inside of the perianth lobes while in the Kunje plants the inner lobes are white. These plants are rather strict winter growers and need only sparse watering during summer. In general the Kunje plants seem to be slightly easier to maintain in cultivation than Haworthia dimorpha. Two populations are known in the Kunje area while Herbarium records of plants from the Waboomsberg to the north and the Heksberg to the south-west may also be the same component. |
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