Rogeria longiflora

Rogeria longiflora, the desert foxglove or in Afrikaans djirrie witblom (djirrie white flower), is an erect shrub that grows to 2 m. There is only this one Rogeria species in South Africa.

The branched stems are yellow-green, woody, somewhat square in cross-section and sticky to the touch. The leaves are opposite, broadly ovate and dark green with shiny surfaces. Conspicuous veins spread from the leaf base and branch further up. Leaves are large, up to 20 cm long and wavy, sometimes recurving at the tips. They grow on long petioles.

The species distribution is in  of the north-eastern Richtersveld. The plant also grows in the Namib Desert on the northern side of the Gariep River. This plant was photographed in habitat in the eastern Richtersveld.

The habitat is dry, sandy river beds. In wet years these plants multiply in sandy flats. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century.

R. longiflora has been used medicinally by local tribes (Williamson, 2010; iSpot; www.namibrand.com; www.kyffhauser.co.za; www.sciencedirect.com; http://redlist.sanbi.org).