Cyphostemma puberulum

Cyphostemma puberulum is a climbing perennial growing many short-haired branches that bear tendrils.

The digitate leaf has three to five elliptic leaflets. The leaflets taper to both tip and base, sometimes rounded at the tip. The margins are unevenly to raggedly toothed. The slightly fleshy, dark green, glossy blades have ascending lateral veins and midribs recessed on their upper surfaces. Leaf petioles and leaflet petiolules are present, as well as stipules at the petiole base.

The large, flat and horizontal inflorescence comprises many small, creamy flowers in branched cymes among glandular hairs. The flowers grow from short side-branches or at nodes opposite the leaves. Buds are 3 mm long, constricted in the centre, their hairy calyces minute. There are four petals, four stamens and a hairy ovary in the flower. The slightly ovoid, hairy fruit is about 8 mm long.

The distribution in South Africa is in the provinces north of the Vaal River and in some neighbouring countries, including Zimbabwe and Botswana.

The plants grow in hot, dry terrain. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Leistner, (Ed.), 2000; JSTOR; http://redlist.sanbi.org).