Adenium oleifolium stems

Contorted old Adenium oleifolium stems come about from a long life of many blooming seasons. Their smooth, pale brown surfaces are scarred where lost leaves used to be attached. These branches get up to about 25 cm long.

Only stem-tips retain the long narrow leaves that are strongly folded in and slightly curved down, rendering the tips beak-like.

Flower features indicate that hospitality to pollinators is not scrimped. The flowers are equipped with well-designed access facilities to the parts of visitor interest. Spreading pink lobes, elliptic to nearly oblong and free to flutter signals in the wind, offer adequate landing sites. The wide flower tubes, decoratively striped on the inside from mouth to base, ensure ample room to manoeuvre around the vital parts (Van Rooyen and Van Rooyen, 2019; Frandsen, 2017; iNaturalist; https://pza.sanbi.org).