Welwitschia mirabilis
Hook. f.
Welwitschia
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Luis Querido, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Luis Querido
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Luis Querido, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Luis Querido
iNaturalist· cc-by-nc
(c) Colin Ralston, some rights reserved (CC BY-NC), uploaded by Colin Ralston
Description
A shrub. It has a taproot. It has a fat trunk. It grows 2 m tall. The trunk is dark grey and cracked. There are 2 leaves growing on either side of the trunk. They are thick and leathery. The flower is a cone. Male and female cones are on separate plants. The seeds are 7 mm long by 5 mm wide and 2 mm dep. The mature seed has wings. A female plant can have 100-200 cones each with 100 seeds.
Edible Uses
The flowers are eaten raw or in vegetable dishes. The fresh green cones, especially from female plants, are eaten raw or roasted in ashes, particularly after rains.
Traditional Uses
The flowers are eaten raw and also in vegetable dishes. The fresh green cones especially from female plants are eaten after rains by roasting in ashes or eating them raw.
Distribution
It is a subtropical plant. It grows in hot arid places. It grows in areas with an annual rainfall below 200 mm. It grows in deep soils often over limestone. It grows between 30-150 m above sea level. It can resist wind. It is resistant to drought. It can grow in arid places.
Where It Grows
Africa, Angola, Central Africa, Namibia, Southern Africa,
Cultivation
Plants can be grown from seed but need moisture to overcome the germination inhibitor.
Production
It grows slowly. Plants can live for a very long time.
Synonyms
Also Known As
Onyanga, Oyjitumbo, Wonderplant
References (2)
- Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (1999). Survey of Economic Plants for Arid and Semi-Arid Lands (SEPASAL) database. Published on the Internet; http://www.rbgkew.org.uk/ceb/sepasal/internet [Accessed 13th June 2011]
- World Checklist of Useful Plant Species 2020. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew