Berzelia lanuginosa or vleikolkol

Berzelia lanuginosa, commonly known as vleiknoppies or vleikolkol in Afrikaans, is an evergreen fynbos shrub with spherical flowerheads. Not only are all 12 members of the Berzelia genus endemic to the Cape Floral Kingdom, the entire family of Bruniaceae lives in the fynbos.

As the vlei (marsh) part of the common names suggest, B. lanuginosa is commonly found in water rich or marshy areas, low-lying sandy flats or slopes where water seeps. The kolkol (patchy) name component is derived from the clustered stands of the plants in the fynbos; patches of the creamy white flowers visible from afar. Knoppies (little knobs) refer to the spherical flowerheads.

The species distribution lies between Clanwilliam and Bredasdorp (www.plantzafrica.com; Bean and Johns, 2005).