Tylecodon paniculatus buds

The greenish cream Tylecodon paniculatus buds spiral up the stalk below its tip, from well-spaced lower down to closely clustered at the undeveloped end. Elongation will space the small upper ones as well, by the time they open or before. This will allow the five petals space to reach normal, mature length without squeezing other parts and usually to nod, something the buds in picture are not yet doing.

The sepals of each flower, also five, are in picture already near their full length. The petals now still coloured like them, have much length to gain, growing from each calyx centre. The corolla will later make the calyx look small, also insignificant in colour, once the petals present their floral red.

The pedicels are at this stage sturdy and straight. A narrow bract is present below each pedicel base on the inflorescence axis (Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; Manning, 2007).