Asclepias praemorsa

Asclepias praemorsa, commonly known as the sandstone wirestem and previously scientifically as Gomphocarpus truncatus, is a perennial reaching heights from 24 cm to 78 cm. The plants grow annual, usually solitary stems that remain unbranched. Plant parts contain milky sap.

The specific name, praemorsa, is a Latin word meaning "appearing as if it has been bitten off", referring to something that ends abruptly or bluntly, either the leaves or some floral part.

The species distribution of this South African endemic is in the Eastern Cape and KwaZulu-Natal.

The habitat is rocky grassland in sandstone derived soil from the coast to elevations around 450 m. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century (Pooley, 1998; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).