Didelta carnosa var. tomentosa

Didelta carnosa var. tomentosa is a sprawling to rounded shrublet growing fleshy branches and yellow flowers. It has narrowly elliptic leaves that taper towards the base. These leaves are fleshy, densely hairy or grey-felted with their margins rolled under and rounded tips.

The flowerheads grow solitary on naked stalks. Below the flowerhead conspicuous collars of bracts in two rows are found. The outer row consists of five broadly tapering bracts that open widely into a saucer-like base for the flowerhead. The inner row of bracts is narrowly lanceolate and toothed, tapering to acute tips. In the photo the younger flowers have dark disc flower centres where florets have not yet opened. Flowering occurs from midwinter to early summer.

The distribution is along the South African west coast and in Namibia. This plant was photographed in the Karoo Desert National Botanical Garden at Worcester during August.

The habitat is coastal dunes and flats where the plants grow in sandy soil. The variety is not considered to be threatened in its habitat early in the twenty first century (Manning, 2009; Manning and Goldblatt, 1996; http://redlist.sanbi.org).