Crassula columnaris subsp. columnaris, locally known as koesnaatjie

Crassula columnaris subsp. columnaris, the scent bottle or koesnaatjie (Afrikaans) is a very small succulent. The name koesnaatjie has so far defied attempts at translation. It is derived from the Hottentot or Khoi name for this plant. The scent bottle name relates to the pleasant aroma exuded by the flowers.

The plant rarely grows taller than 10 cm when in flower, but spreads into small clusters of leaf rosettes by branching below ground level. It produces a compact head of tiny trumpet-shaped flowers, white or cream coloured.

C. columnaris subsp. columnaris is found in the Northern Cape, the Western Cape, particularly the Little Karoo and in the Eastern Cape. C. columnaris subsp. prolifera occurs in Namaqualand, the Richtersveld and southern Namibia.

Subsp. columnaris is not considered threatened in its habitat early in the wenty first century.

At www.kambroo.com there is an image of a new form of the plant found in the Anysberg Nature Reserve where this specimen was also photographed during September (http://redlist.sanbi.org).