Pteronia incana

Pteronia incana, commonly wild lavender or in Afrikaans asbos (ash bush), is a much branched shrub reaching heights of 50 cm to 1 m.

The species is widely distributed in the Northern Cape, the Western Cape and the Eastern Cape, in a broad strip along the coast from Namaqualand to Gqeberha (Port Elizabeth).

The plant grows in varied habitats, including lowland flats, along drainage lines, on small inclines (heuweltjies) in renosterveld, scrub and succulent Karoo. The species is not considered threatened in habitat early in the twenty first century.

Asbos is not palatable and rarely browsed by livestock and game (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; iSpot; www.renu-karoo.co.za; http://redlist.sanbi.org).