Delphinium dasycaulon, a flower of tropical Africa

Delphinium dasycaulon is an exotic of tropical Africa. No delphiniums or larkspurs as they are commonly known are indigenous in South Africa.

The sometimes branched stem of this hairy plant is erect, up to nearly 1 m tall. The leaves grow mainly from the base, while some scattered stem-leaves are also present. The simple basal leaves are rounded to kidney-shaped and broadly five-lobed. Stem-leaves are divided into five parts, each three-lobed.

The blue flowers grow in loose racemes, subtended by linear bracts. The calyx is two-lipped and five-lobed, the dominant floral component. It has a notable spur at the back. The four petals are inconspicuous.

The Delphinium genus of about 300 perennials in the Ranunculaceae family is native throughout the Northern Hemisphere, plus a few species occurring in montane, tropical Africa as this one.

The plant is poisonous (JSTOR; Wikipedia; iNaturalist).