Ansellia africana hardly marked

The resupinate flowers of Ansellia africana grow in branched inflorescences that become about 50 cm long on stems of similar length. The sepals and lateral petals in picture look very similar, narrowly elliptic with rounded tips. The flower has hardly any markings upon this part of its corolla, only a few small, sparsely scattered spots are visible.

The lip of an A. africana flower is unmarked, brighter yellow than the rest of the corolla. Its surface is uneven and its margin irregularly shaped, contrasting against the smooth margins of laterals and sepals.

These plants are well known in the Lowveld, growing in dry as well as moist conditions on different tree species, even dead ones. Plants grow old and large where conditions permit.

A. africana is sometimes seen “planted” near homes, not for their flowers, but to ward off lightning. Maybe faith is correlated with beauty (Pooley, 1998; Onderstall, 1984; www.plantzafrica.com).