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Cape leadwort

Habit Plants evergreen shrubs.
Stems

erect, trailing, or climbing, diffusely branched, to 3+ m, glabrous or pubescent on youngest shoots.

Leaves

usually sessile, sometimes short-petiolate;

blade elliptic, oblanceolate, or spatulate, (1–)2.5–9 × 0.5–2.5 cm, base usually long-attenuate, sometimes auriculate, apex acute or obtuse, mucronate.

Inflorescences

2.5–3(–5) cm, rachises short-pilose (hairs ca. 0.1 mm), eglandular;

floral bracts lanceolate, 3–9 × 1–2 mm.

Flowers

3-stylous;

calyx 10–13 mm, tube usually short-pilose and with stalked, capitate, glandlike protuberances ca. 1 mm along distal 1/2–3/4 of ribs;

corolla pale blue, 37–53 mm, tube 28–40 mm (more than 2 times length of calyx), lobes 10–16 × 6–15 mm;

stamens included or exserted.

Capsules

8 mm.

Seeds

brown, 7 mm.

2n

= 14 + 0–1B.

Plumbago auriculata

Phenology Flowering year-round.
Habitat Hummocks, thickets, disturbed sites in dry soil
Elevation 0-50 m (0-200 ft)
Distribution
from FNA
FL; s Africa [Introduced in North America]
[WildflowerSearch map]
[BONAP county map]
Discussion

Plumbago auriculata is frequently cultivated in Mediterranean-type warmer climates, especially in California, Arizona, and Texas.

(Discussion copyrighted by Flora of North America; reprinted with permission.)

Source FNA vol. 5, p. 611.
Parent taxa Plumbaginaceae > Plumbago
Sibling taxa
P. zeylanica
Synonyms P. capensis
Name authority Lamarck: in J. Lamarck et al., Encycl. 2: 270. (1786)
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