Serruria elongata

Serruria elongata, the long-stalked spiderhead, is an erect shrub reaching heights around 1,5 m. The hairless, fleshy leaves divided into many needle-like leaflets are arranged in whorls in the upper parts of the plant. 

The sturdy flower stem, the peduncle, sometimes well over 30 cm in length bears loose clusters of flower-heads. They start off as flat-topped silvery buds as are present here. Upon opening they morph into the complex flower-heads that fit the generic name of spiderhead. The plant flowers from midwinter to midspring.

The distribution is in the southwest of the Western Cape, in the mountains of Du Toit’s Kloof, Riviersonderend and Bredasdorp. This picture was taken in Fernkloof, Hermanus. 

Their habitat is sandy flats and montane sandstone slopes of the fynbos. The species is near threatened early in the twenty first century due to habitat destruction from varied human activities, including too frequent fire (Manning, 2007; Bean and Johns, 2005; iNaturalist; www.proteaatlas.org.za; http://redlist.sanbi.org).