Edmondia sesamoides pale yellow involucre insides

These flowerheads of Edmondia sesamoides were seen in Fernkloof in December. The yellow centres packed with florets are not quite what they used to be when the disc florets were fresh. Brown follows yellow as the disc florets die. The oldest flowerhead, bottom left, shows the involucre reflexed, the inside surfaces of the bracts white.

Each flowerhead measures close to 30 cm across. The fruits to come are elliptic.

The plant grows on rocky slopes and flats. The needle-like leaves belonging with the flowers are tiny, adpressed to the upper parts of the grey stems. Lower leaves of E. sesamoides are spreading with their margins rolled up. The green strap-leaves in the photo belong to another plant. Personal space isn’t respected by fynbos plants! 

Lower growing plants are gradually swamped in the fynbos by taller shrubs in the established time share arrangement among short and tall species. This lasts until a veld fire restores a different balance, characteristic of a new beginning in the growth cycle. It allows another set of species, many short, fast ones including annuals and resprouters to dominate again for a while (Manning, 2007; Bean and Johns, 2005; iNaturalist).