Pelargonium peltatum leaves

These shiny, thinly succulent leaves of Pelargonium peltatum were found growing in May on a rocky outcrop high on the Rooiberg, alongside the dirt road between Calitzdorp and Van Wyksdorp. Unfortunately no flowers then; would have had to wait until September! The leathery leaves are five- to seven-lobed and slightly folded along the lobe divisions. 

The leaf lobes don’t show much indentation here, apart from at the leaf base. The petioles are attached where the leaf segments meet and not on the leaf margins as is common in many other plants. It is possible to identify a leaf base as in the "centre" when it is off-centre and still kind of makes sense! The adjective that is the specific name of the plant, peltatum, is derived from the Latin word, pelta, meaning shield. It refers to the petiole being attached near the middle of the blade, as the handle of a shield.

Characteristic maroon zonal markings are usually in the leaf centres. These dark red leaf markings are less ring-like here than sometimes seen. They are variable in shape, width and intensity.

The red-brown stems zigzag a little between the nodes where the petioles are attached (Euston-Brown and Kruger, 2023; Vlok and Schutte-Vlok, 2015; Manning, 2009; iNaturalist).