STAPELIA 



STAPELIA 



3225 



Stems low, leafless, coarsely 4-angled, the angle 

 coarsely dentate, usually more or less covered with 

 tubercles and excrescences: fls. often large, generally 

 fetid and commonly arise from the angles and notches 

 of the sts., apparently in no regularity and are usually 

 grotesquely barred and mottled with dark or dull 

 colors; calyx and corolla 5-parted, corolla-segms. 

 spreading, usually narrow and fleshy, mostly purple or 

 marbled, in some species pale; crown in 2 rows, the 

 outer horizontally spreading, deeply 5-lobed, the lobes 

 entire or shortly 2-3-cleft, the inner of 5 scales adnate 

 to the base of the anthers: fr. of 2 follicles, containing 

 comose seeds. About 60 species according to N. E. 

 Brown in Dyer, Flora Capensis, vol. 4 (1909); Schu- 

 mann, in Engler & Prantl's Pflanzenfamilien, considers 

 that the genus contains 70-80 species; Decaisne, in 

 DeCandolle's Prodromus, 8 (1844), describes 89 spe- 

 cies, and makes references to several more. S. Afr. 

 chiefly, 3 or 4 in Trop. Afr. Some of the species have 

 fls. several inches across, although the plants them- 

 selves are relatively small; in fact, the fls. of S. gigantea 

 are a foot across. 



Most of the stapelias demand the treatment given to 

 Cape euphorbias and to cacti, a light, airy, rather 

 dry position during the growing and blooming seasons 

 and a soil made porous with rubble. They are mostly 

 summer and fall bloomers. They should remain dor- 

 mant in winter. Propagated easily by cuttings. They 

 do best, however, when not grown so dry as cacti are 

 grown. (See under Succulents, p. 2674.) The stape- 

 lias are known in cultivation mostly in botanic gardens 

 and in the collections of amateurs. Only a few names 

 occur in the American trade, and one of these (S. cylin- 

 drifa) is an Echidnopsis. Several other species are 

 likely to be found in fanciers' collections. 



KEY TO THE SPECIES. 



A. Corolla without a distinct raised ring on 



the disk. 

 B. Inner surface of the disk and lobes 



glabrous and rugose or smooth, 

 c. The corolla-lobes extended not 

 more and usually less than 8 in. 

 diam. (except perhaps in A'o. 9). 

 D. Lobes of the corolla nearly 

 smooth, cilia te with long flat- 

 tened tapering hairs 9. bella 



DD. Lobes of the corolla very dis- 

 tinctly ciliate with simple 



hairs 8. similis 



cc. The corolla-lobes extended 



in. diam. 

 D. Lobes of the corolla ciliate with 



simple hairs 6. Pillansii 



DD. Lobes of the corolla not ciliate. . 7. glabriflora 

 BB. Inner surface of the disk or disk and 

 lobes hairy, besides the border of 

 cilia, usually transversely rugose, 

 c. Corolla-lobes extended 8^-14 in. 

 diam., lobes 2%-6}& in. long. 

 D. Center of corolla shattowly de- 

 pressed 3. gigantea 



DD. Center of corolla cup-shaped, 



about 1 \^ in. deep 4. nobilis 



cc. Corolla-lobes extended 4*4-3% in. 



diam., lobes 1 Yr^A in. long. 

 D. Transrerse yellow lines on 



corolla absent 2. grandiflora 



DD. Transverse yellow or whitish 



lines on corolla present 1. hirsuta 



ccc. Corolla-lobes extended 3-4 J^ in. 



diam., lobes 1 V^-l % in. long. .. 1. hirsuta var. 

 cccc. Corolla-lobes extended 2-8 in. 



diam., lobes 1-1 }$ in. long. 

 D. Disk of corolla shortly and usu- 

 ally thinly pilose or pubescent 

 with erect hairs ............. 11. maculosoides 



DD. Disk of corolla thickly or densely 



covered with fine long hairs. . . 5. tsomoensis 

 AA. Corolla with a distinct raised ring or 



cushion on the disk. 

 B. Inner lobes of the crown sometimes 

 slightly humped at the base or con- 

 nected to the outer row, but not pro- 

 duced into a distinct dorsal horn 

 (see also No. 12 in which the outer 

 horn is sometimes not more than 

 } line long) ................... 13. namaquensis 



BB. Inner lobes of crown distinctly 2- 



horned. 



c. Annulus or ring }^-2 lines high, 

 erect, very obtuse or rounded at 

 the top, not cushion-like nor 

 with a spreading or recurved 

 margin. 



D. The corolla pale yellowish or 

 light yellow with spots and 

 transverse lines on the basal 

 part of the lobes dark purple- 

 brown to dull purple, and their 

 tips often entirely purple- 

 brown, or in the variety en- 

 tirely dark purple-brown with 

 inconspicuous transverse yel- 

 low lines ................... 10. mutabilis 



DD The corolla pale yellow, 

 sprinkled all over with dots or 

 small spots of_ purple-brown, 

 lobes 5-10 lines long, not 

 ciliate .................... 12 pulchella 



CC. Annulus or ring very prominent, 

 with an acute edge to the hori- 

 zontally spreading or recurved 

 margin ...................... 14. variegata 



1. hirsuta, Linn. Sts. erect, 5-8, occasionally 12 in. 

 high, softly puberulous, green: fls. 1-3 together, near the 

 base of young sts. ; corolla 4-5 in. diam., basal half of 

 lobes cream-color, more or less tinted with purplish on 

 the disk, upper half very dark purple-brown, marked 

 with transverse cream-colored, or yellowish and purple- 

 brown lines, white- 



hairy. S. Afr. Var. 

 unguipetala, N. E. 

 Br. (S. unguipetala, 

 N. E. Br.). Corolla 

 3H-4H in. diam., 

 disk with the center 

 and 5 bands radiat- 

 ing to the sinuses, 

 pale greenish ochre, 

 margins of the upper 

 half of the lobes much 

 revolute, tips up- 

 curved. S.Afr. G.C. 

 II. 7:335; III. 44: 

 169. 



2. grandiflora, 

 Mass. Fig. 3679. Sts 

 6-12 in. high, gray- 

 velvety- pubescent, 

 with very compressed 

 angles: fls. 1-3 



together, near the base of the sts. ; corolla 5-6 in. diam., 

 velvety-pubescent, inner face dark purple-brown, lobes 

 ciliate, darkest toward the tip, upper half rugose and 

 transversely rugose, without markings, basal hah" white 

 or pale-purple-haired. S.Afr. G.L. 27:67. R.B. 40, 

 p. 186. R.H. 1858, p. 154. 



3. gigantea, N. E. Br. Sts. erect, branching from a 

 short decumbent base, 4-8 in. high, pubescent, light 



3679. Stapelia grandiflora. ( X K) 



