Dewinteria petrophila
Afrikaans: Kaokoveld klipblom.
Genus: 1 species.
Region: South Africa, Namibia, Angola.
Habitat: arid region; cliff faces, in crevices of granite rock on all aspects; altitude of 800-1700 m.
Botany
Taxonomy: previously known as Rogeria petrophila
Soft, squat to trailing perennial herb; with mucilage glands.
Stem: slightly swollen at base (somewhat ovate and up to 5 mm in diameter) and compressed in rock crevices.
Roots: fibrous.
Leaves: grey-green, the main branch, with petioles 20-60 mm long; semi-succulent; opposite; broadly heart- to kidney-shaped
with coarse teeth on the margins; with extrafloral nectaries at the base of the leaf stalks.
Flowers: axillary, conspicuous, trumpet-shaped, 30-70 mm long; cream-coloured to pale yellow, purplish in the throat and tube; stalk ± 3 cm long.
Calyx: 5-lobed, elongated triangular; up to 3 mm long.
Corolla: 5 broadly egg-shaped lobes, the lower pair slightly larger; slightly swollen at the base, sparsely covered with mucilage glands.
Stamens: 4, 12 mm long.
Fruit: capsule, 18-25 mm long, lance-shaped, tapering into a curved point, and flattened; brown, rod-like, up to 2 mm long seeds.
Dispersal: wind; soft thread-like trailing branches from the base of its stems grow deep in dark crevices producing seeds by small, self-fertilized, inconspicuous flowers, giving heart-shaped, larger seeds.