Albuca cephalopodioides - Karree Rivier Tanqua Karoo
Albuca cephalopodioides (Cephalopodes-clade of sea animals with tentacles eg: octopus-refering to the leaves like tentacles) is the trade name we currently use for this very attractive Albuca from the Tanqua Karoo.
In cultivation the leaves are curly in various directions, up or sideways. The flowers are similar to those of Albuca concordiana. The plants however are unique as Albuca concordiana does also occur in the neighbourhood (few km) and there is no indication of the one species grading into the other.
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Albuca cephalopodioides in cultivation.
Here follows a preliminary description:
Plants 10 - 20 cm high
Leaves, up to about 5, deciduous, linear, channelled, dark green, cork screw coiled and otherwise coiled about 10 to 20 cm long.
Flowers spreading,firm, yellow with broad green band, borne horizontal on the peduncle. Tepals 10 mm long.
Tepal whorls about equal.
Capsules ovoid roughly 3-angled (oblong-globose) 20 mm long.
Seed: Black, flat, variable in shape but generally suboval, approximately up to 4 mm wide
Flowering August September.
Type locality: Shale flats, Karree Rivier (Tanqua Karoo)
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A plant in habitat Karree Rivier.
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Seed.
Seed grown material is very limited and the larger seedlings from this species will be sold on Plant Auction for now.