Family:
Orobanchaceae Vent.
Genus:
Melasma P.J.Bergius

Melasma scabrum P.J.Bergius

This species is accepted, and its native range is Zimbabwe to S. Africa.

[FZ]

Scrophulariaceae, D. Philcox. Flora Zambesiaca 8:2. 1990

Morphology General Habit
Erect or ascending perennial herb up to 100 cm. tall, almost simple or branched, short tuberculate hispid-scabrid almost throughout except flowers; stems ascending, leafy.
Morphology Leaves
Leaves 10–50 x 2–6 mm., opposite, narrowly-oblong or lanceolate, obtuse, slightly narrowed at base if at all, subentire to dentate, or occasionally lower shortly lobed, sessile or subsessile.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers
Flowers in lax racemes 6–20 cm. long at ends of branches, long pedicellate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Pedicel
Pedicels (1 )2.5–10 cm. long.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracts
Bracts subtending pedicels leaflike, becoming smaller above.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Inflorescences Bracteoles
Bracteoles two, opposite to subopposite in upper half or third of pedicel, but well below calyx, 4–7 (13) x 0.5–0.75 mm., linear to narrowly linear-lanceolate, spreading.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Calyx
Calyx 15–22 mm. long in flower, campanulate-oblong, loose, somewhat angled, 10-nerved, densely reticulate-veined, somewhat concave at insertion of pedicel, 5-lobed, increasing to 30 mm. long in fruit, inflated; lobes 3–6 mm. long, broadly deltate, densely ciliate.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Flowers Corolla
Corolla white, yellow or purplish-brown, 20–38 mm. long, tube purple or red without, densely to subdensely long pilose without, extending to lobes; lobes 5, rounded, glabrous to subglabrous within.
Morphology Reproductive morphology Fruits
Capsule to 13 x 8 mm., broadly ellipsoid to subobovoid, slightly emarginate below persistent style.

Native to:

Cape Provinces, Free State, KwaZulu-Natal, Lesotho, Northern Provinces, Swaziland, Zimbabwe

Melasma scabrum P.J.Bergius appears in other Kew resources:

First published in Descr. Pl. Cap.: 162 (1767)

Accepted by

  • Germishuizen, G. & Meyer, N.L. (eds.) (2003). Plants of Southern Africa an annotated checklist Strelitzia 14: 1-1231. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
  • Kliment, J., Turis, P. & Janišová, M. (2016). Taxa of vascular plants endemic to the Carpathian Mts Preslia. Casopsi Ceské Botanické Spolecnosti 88: 19-76.

Literature

Kew Backbone Distributions

  • Germishuizen, G. & Meyer, N.L. (eds.) (2003). Plants of Southern Africa an annotated checklist Strelitzia 14: 1-1231. National Botanical Institute, Pretoria.
  • Kliment, J., Turis, P. & Janišová, M. (2016). Taxa of vascular plants endemic to the Carpathian Mts Preslia. Casopsi Ceské Botanické Spolecnosti 88: 19-76.

  • Flora Zambesiaca

    Flora Zambesiaca
    http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0

  • Kew Backbone Distributions

    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0

  • Kew Names and Taxonomic Backbone

    The International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families 2022. Published on the Internet at http://www.ipni.org and http://apps.kew.org/wcsp/
    © Copyright 2017 International Plant Names Index and World Checklist of Selected Plant Families. http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0