Melianthus major

Melianthus major, the giant honey flower or in Afrikaans kruidjie-roer-my-nie (herb-touch-me-not), is a smelly shrub growing from shallow, rhizome-like, branching roots, reaching 2 m in height. The plant spreads from suckering. It offers much nectar to birds and insects, but a foul smell to humans when it is touched. 

The species distribution is in the west and south of South Africa in a coastal strip of the Western Cape, the extreme southwest of the Northern Cape and the western parts of the Eastern Cape.

The habitat is scrub veld along water courses. The plant grows in winter, much via suckering and branching in soft, muddy ground of low-lying, wet areas. The habitat population is deemed of least concern early in the twenty first century.

M. major features in traditional medicine of the region for ailments ranging from ringworm to open sores, backache and more, although M. comosus seems to be the more important medicinal option (Curtis-Scott, et al, 2020; Manning, 2009; Van Wyk and Gericke, 2000; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).