Mesembryanthemum bicorne

Mesembryanthemum bicorne, previously scientifically Psilocaulon bicorne, is a spreading, succulent perennial that grows short branches from the centre and long trailing shoots as well. The young, succulent stems are jointed with spaced rings and inconspicuous water cells, the old stems woody.

The leaves emerge paired but one is mostly lost, the remaining ones alternating on the upper stem parts or near the flowers.

The small flowers are white, grown in pairs or solitary at stem-tips. The petals are short, growing in more than one whorl. The yellow anthers are clustered erectly above the flower centre. Flowering happens mostly in the second half of spring. The fruits are five-locular.

The species distribution is in the Western Cape from Worcester to the Little Karoo, Prince Albert and the Eastern Cape as far as Gqeberha. The photo was taken at Minwater near Oudtshoorn.

The habitat is renosterveld, brackish seeps and watercourses, the plants often seen in disturbed patches. The species is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Curtis-Scott, et al, 2020; iNaturalist; http://redlist.sanbi.org).