Conophytum leaves, maybe flavum

When a leaf-pair is more single leaf-body than pair! One may compare other Conophytum and Aizoaceae leaf-pairs to see how this growth habit of fused leaves has come about, gradually and long on the making.

An inverted, succulent cone that in long-gone ancestors used to be a pair of leaves has adopted this smooth, pale green upper surface. In the centre it has a short slit, the surface dotted with tiny windows for sunlight to enter. The slit represents the stem-tip from which the flower and next year’s leaf-pair grow when all goes well. This makes Conophytum worthy of the name cone-plant.

Branched to form a clump, the leaf-bodies have not stepped out of last year’s skins, lying dry-white around their bases. Soon the current leaf skin will join the leftovers, serving as sun shield for some time before it sags.

Seen not far from Springbok, this plant may be Conophytum flavum. Subsp. flavum is known to grow as far south as the Concordia region. If the identification is correct, it will flower yellow as flavum indicates (Van Jaarsveld, et al, 2006; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).