Serruria fucifolia old flowerhead

The Serruria fucifolia flowerhead grows solitary at a stem-tip on a hairy peduncle of 2 cm to 6 cm long. The sweetly scented flowerhead of about 2,5 cm in diameter is silvery pink, fading purple.

The collapsed perianths in the photo are whitish around the style bases. The floral bracts are lance-shaped, in picture red-purple, flat-surfaced, curving out with acutely pointed tips. The curved or straight style is about 9 mm long. In picture the styles are dark-purple, about straight with tiny pollen presenters.

Flowering happens from late winter to after midspring, sometimes to early summer. Insects pollinate the flowers (Manning, 2009; Goldblatt and Manning, 1996; Bond and Goldblatt, 1984; iNaturalist; http://pza.sanbi.org).