Accepted Scientific Name: Huernia thuretii Cels ex Hérincq
Hort. Franc. 73 1866
Huernia striata Photo by: Giuseppe Distefano
Origin and Habitat: Tiras Mountains of Namibia
Synonyms:
See all synonyms of Huernia thuretii
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Accepted name in llifle Database:Huernia thuretii Cels ex HérincqHort. Franc. 73 1866Synonymy: 25
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Description: Huernia striataSN|27746]]SN|27749]] is an extremely neat little species with distinctive banding on the star shaped flowers. It does not make a large flower, but the stripes in the design still make it a standout bloom. It is one of the several forms of the very variable Huernia thuretiiSN|27749]]SN|27746]] which comprise plants with different degrees of annulation of the disc and colouration of the corolla face, but most botanist agree on the fact that all the varieties described until now should all be included in the H. thuretii. The flowers, which arise in succession at the base of the stems, are cup-shaped, with petals white to off-white with red or red-brown broken stripes and a maroon throat. Flowers appear most heavily in late summer.
Remarks: Darryl Plowes believes that there is sufficient evidence to warrant the resurrection of H. striata as a separate species.
Stems: Erect, crowded in fairly large clumps, up to 5 cm long, 8-10(-20) cm thick , 4- (to 5- to 6-) angular, glabrous, glaucous-green, with acute small deltoid teeth (c.2-3 mm long),
Flowers: 1–4 together, (15-)25-35(-40) mm across, facing upwards or outwards, opening in rapid succession, sometimes irregularly borne along the stems, often with several inflorescences on single stems; peduncle (if present) long slender, erect. Pedicel 12- 25 mm long, 2-2.5 mm in diameter basally thickened, glabrous. Sepals about 5 mm long, lanceolate-subulate, glabrous. Corolla with a shallow bowl, sometimes annular. Corolla-lobes 8 mm long, 9 mm broad, triangular, acute or weakly acuminate, often longitudinally convex, erect to divaricate, sometimes revolute, outside sometimes weakly roughened, inside sometimes very weakly papillose, apex often densely furnished with fine acute tubercles to papillae, outside cream-coloured or greenish pale yellow, often dotted with red-brown, inside white, off-white, cream-coloured to (pale) yellowish, with concentric pink to red or brown transverse lines, lines broken, partly composed of dots. Tube basally bright maroon, globose-campanulate or rarely tubular, about 6 mm long and 9 mm in diameter, mouth slightly constricted, margin abruptly spreading.
Outer corona-lobes corona dark crimson to black, lobes narrowly 3- or 4-angular, emarginate, bifid or deeply lobed , alternating with 5 minute tubercles.
Inner corona-lobes orange-brown to black, lobes 1.5 - 2 mm, connivent-erect, ribbon-like with the slightly spreading tips produced 6-8 mm or more above the anthers, acuminate, with a slight transverse thickening at the base, often with nectar droplets. Pollinia brownish-yellow.
Subspecies, varieties, forms and cultivars of plants belonging to the Huernia thuretii group
Huernia bayeri L.C.Leach: has creamy white to yellow (or rarely pink) petals unspotted or sometimes finely spotted with red. Distribution: Eastern Cape.- Huernia brevirostris N.E.Br.: has a greenish-yellow, creamy-yellow or pinkish corolla with red spots and lined tube. Distribution: Graaff-Reinet to Willowmore and associated with the Sundays and Groot River valleys
- Huernia brevirostris subs. baviaana L.C.Leach: has a darker brown densely spotted, papillose, corolla face. Inner corona lobes curving, divergent. Outer corona lobes whitish. Distribution: Baviaanskloof, from Willowmore in a south-eastern direction.
- Huernia brevirostris subs. intermedia (N.E.Br.) L.C.Leach: (intermediate between H. thuretii and H. thuretii var. primulina) has yellowish corolla face with few marking and is variable in nearly all characters. Distribution: Cradock-Pearston area and Sundays River.
- Huernia brevirostris var. parvipuncta A.C.White & B.Sloane: has a cream-coloured to yellowish corolla, rarely with a low annulus, with well marked and evenly spaced marron-red dots. Distribution: Eastern Cape.
- Huernia striata Oberm.: has cup-shaped flowers, with petals white to off-white with red or red-brown broken stripes and a maroon throat. Distribution: Tiras Mountains of Namibia.
- Huernia thuretii Cels ex Hérincq: has creamy-yellow flowers spotted or banded with red. The degree of annulation of the disc and colouration of the face is variable. Distribution: RSA (Eastern Cape) and Namibia.
- Huernia thuretii var. primulina (N.E.Br.) L.C.Leach: has longer more creeping stems. Corolla uniformly pale yellow a little larger with a low annulus and papillae rather dense prominent. Distribution: Eastern Cape.
Bibliography: Major refrerences and further lectures
1) Excelsa Taxon. Ser. 4: 182-187 1988
2) Focke Albers, Ulrich Meve “Illustrated Handbook of Succulent Plants: Asclepiadaceae: Asclepiadaceae” Volume 4 Springer, 2002
3) Doreen Court “Succulent Flora of Southern Africa” CRC Press, 01/Jun/2000
4) N. E. BROWN. “Flora Capensis” Vol 4, page 518 1909
5) White & Sloane “The Stapelieae” edn 2. 3: 879-882, 1170-1176 1937
6) Excelsa Taxonomic Series 4:184 1988
7) James Cullen, Sabina G. Knees, H. Suzanne Cubey “The European Garden Flora Flowering Plants: A Manual for the Identification of Plants Cultivated in Europe, Both Out-of-Doors and Under Glass” Cambridge University Press, 11/Aug/2011
8) Luckhoff “The Stapelieae of Southern Africa” Capetown, A.A. Balkema 1952
9) Bruyns, P.V. 2005. “Stapeliads of southern Africa and Madagascar.” Vol. II. Umdaus Press, Hatfield.
Huernia striata Photo by: Giuseppe DistefanoSend a photo of this plant.The gallery now contains thousands of pictures, however it is possible to do even more. We are, of course, seeking photos of species not yet shown in the gallery but not only that, we are also looking for better pictures than those already present.
Read More... Cultivation and Propagation: Huernia striataSN|26460]]SN|27749]] isn't difficult to grow and flower.
Spring: When winter ends and they begin to grow again, they will require much water and soaking the pots will no longer put the plants at risk for rot. In the spring they will grow well in partial shade and leaving them out in the rain may provide them with the water they need.
Summer: In the summer months they will tolerate heavy rain, but will be just as happy if the season is dry. It's best to sort out the stems while the plants are resting in the summer before they begin their autumnal growth cycle. They will tolerate very hot weather outdoors as long as they are kept in filtered light and this will encourage them to flower in the Autumn. They also enjoy some fertiliser. Moving the plants as they are developing buds may cause them to spontaneously abort the flowers all together.
Autumn: In the fall keep them outdoors until the night time temperatures drop below the 10°C.
Winter: Winter care presents no problems at 10° C with plenty of light. As soon as they are flowered be sure to take extra precautions to keep them dry, because damp cool conditions when the plants are resting is an invitation to fungal infections, but - according to temperatures –some occasional lit watering may be useful.
Potting medium: Since roots are quite shallow, use a cactus mix or add extra perlite or pumice to regular soil potting soil. A gritty, very free-draining compost is suitable, and clay pots help the plants to dry out between watering. Re-pot every 2 years.
Pest and diseases: Huernia are generally fairly easy to grow, especially if kept pest-free. They are very susceptible to stem and root mealy bugs, and damage from these may well initiate fungal attack. Any time when there is a dead or dying stem in the pot it is important to remove it immediately and completely before other healthy stems can become ill too, isolate the healthy parts, dry them off, and re-root them in new compost.
Traditional Uses: In Kenya the sap of Huernia asperaSN|27749]]SN|26460]] is harnessed from the plant by breaking it and is applied onto wounds to treat them by drying them up.
Propagation: Easiest with stem cuttings. Allow cuttings to dry a day before planting. Stems must be laid (Not buried) on gritty compost and will then root from the underside of the stems. It can also be increased from seeds sowing in spring in moist, sandy peat moss. Barely cover seeds. Seeds germinate quickly.
In any season it's best to lay the stems out for several days before replanting them and then pot them only in dry soil and withhold any water until they begin to shrivel or start growing again.
