16-602: Ptyas Salisb. Gasteria is a genus of succulent plants , native to South Africa and the far south-west corner of Namibia . The genus is named for its stomach -shaped flowers ( "gaster" is greek for "stomach") that result from the swollen base on the corolla . Common names include ox-tongue , cow-tongue , lawyer's tongue and, occasionally, mother-in-law's tongue . Gasterias are recognisable from their thick, hard, succulent "tongue-shaped" leaves. These are either in two opposite ranks (distichous), or in various distinctive spiral arrangements. Their inflorescence
32-464: A distichous formation. In addition, the species tend to flow into each other in gradual transitions, with many intermediate forms, rather than being cleanly divided into discrete and separate species. Lastly, hybrids occur easily and naturally, whenever the range of two species overlap in habitat. There is therefore considerable disagreement on how many species exist, with as many as 100 names being listed. Using morphology (especially flower structure),
48-416: A peak in the spring, such as Gasteria rawlinsonii , Gasteria bicolor & Gasteria carinata . The westernmost species vary in their flowering times, within the species. Gasteria pillansii in the far west, flowers in summer (December–January), except for its northernmost variety "var. ernesti-ruschii" which flowers in autumn (March–April). Gasteria disticha usually flowers in spring, but in
64-412: A stem) and some plants proliferate from the base to form offsets and clumps. It is highly variable and plants' appearance depends very much on the environment (e.g. in fynbos which is subject to frequent fires, the plants never leave their juvenile phase, and stay tiny and close to the ground, not unlike the "armstrongii" plant discussed below). It is easily confused with the larger Gasteria excelsa to
80-425: A traditional and widely accepted taxonomy was described in 1994 (van Jaarsveld et al.), dividing the genus into 2 sections, 4 series, and 16 species. E. J. van Jaarsveld has revised the taxonomy since then and the most recent synoptic review was published in 2007. Several new species have been described in recent years, as well. Currently the number of accepted species is 29. A phylogenetic study in 2005 suggest that
96-493: Is a genus of colubrid snakes. This genus is one of several colubrid genera colloquially called " rat snakes " or "ratsnakes" . The generic name derives from Ancient Greek πτυάς, meaning " spitter ", which referred to a kind of snake believed to spit venom in the eyes of humans, although in reality none of the Ptyas are known to spit venom. 13 species are recognized: This article relating to Colubrinae
112-589: Is a stub . You can help Misplaced Pages by expanding it . Gasteria nitida Gasteria nitida , the Bathurst gasteria , is a succulent plant , native to the Eastern Cape grasslands of South Africa . The species name "nitida" means "shiny" in Latin, and refers to the leaf surfaces. The fat, shiny, spotted, triangular leaves usually (but not always) grow as a rosette. The plant is acaulescent (without
128-474: Is also unique, with their curved, stomach-shaped flowers , which hang from inclined racemes . The species of this genus are mostly native to the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa , where the bulk of the species occur – especially in the small area between Makhanda and Uniondale which enjoys rainfall throughout the year. However, the distribution of several species extends widely across
144-555: The Eastern Cape Province, South Africa , from Uniondale in the west, as far as the Fish River in the east. Here it occurs on rocky hill slopes in grassland vegetation - one of the few Gasterias to favour an open habitat. The vegetation types tend to be grassveld, grassy fynbos or renosterveld. The soil tends to be coarse, mineral poor sands, derived from the quartzite sandstones of the region. The rainfall occurs all year round in this region (600-800mm per annum), but slightly more in
160-890: The east, but that massive species has more spreading leaves with sharp serrulate margins, and marginate keels. Gasteria excelsa also has light pink flowers on its massive inflorescences . The flowers of Gasteria nitida are a darker reddish pink, with yellow throats (the only Gasteria with this feature). The inflorescence is branched, and flowering time is in summer - from December to February in South Africa . Juvenile plants look markedly different to adults. Young plants are distichous (leaves only in two opposite rows); while adults are often rosettes. Juvenile leaves are tongue-shaped and recurved; while adults leaves are more upright and triangular. Juvenile leaves are rough with tubercles; while adult leaves are smooth and shiny. A smaller plant, Gasteria armstrongii , which occurs just to
176-659: The far north of its range near Beaufort West it flowers in December. Gasteria species are prone to Fusarium root rot, if they are over-watered. The cultivar 'Little Warty' is a recipient of the Royal Horticultural Society 's Award of Garden Merit . Several hybrids with species in other related genera have been created in cultivation, such as between Gasteria and Aloe ( × Gasteraloe ), and between Gasteria and Haworthia ( ×Gasterhaworthia ). Ptyas 13, see text Ptyas
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#1732776157648192-664: The genus may be sub-divided into 5 groups with respect to an increasing pattern in DNA content and geographical distribution: Species with distichous (two-ranked), strap-shaped leaves which are usually without keels. Species generally form rosettes, with leaves usually bearing marginiform keels. Gasteria species are grown in well-drained, sandy soils in light shade. The species can all be propagated by off-sets and cuttings (leaf cuttings can usually be rooted easily). They are also commonly propagated by seed. Germination usually occurs within 8 days but may take as long as one month depending on
208-506: The low-altitude coastal regions of the country, in an arched horseshoe shape across South Africa . At the one end of the genus's distribution, a species, Gasteria pillansii , extends into the far south-west corner of Namibia . At the other end, a species reaches the Lebombo mountains of Eswatini . Gasteria is part of the family Asphodelaceae , subfamily Asphodeloideae . Closely related genera include Aloe and Haworthia , and
224-416: The species of these genera are known to hybridise relatively easily with each other. Dividing Gasteria into species is extremely difficult, as each plant can be highly variable. One plant will look different depending on its location, its soil and its age. Young Gasteria plants typically look entirely different from older specimens. Usually, young plants have flat, strap-shaped, highly tubercled leaves, in
240-639: The species. Flowering times vary between species, but is usually in the spring & summer. Those in the summer rainfall areas to the east, tend to always flower in spring to summer (October–January in South Africa) such as Gasteria batesiana , Gasteria croucheri & Gasteria acinacifolia . Those in the areas which receive rainfall all year, usually flower also in later summer (December–January) such as Gasteria excelsa , Gasteria nitida , Gasteria vlokii and Gasteria brachyphylla var. bayeri . Others in this region flower all year, but with
256-603: The west on the banks of the Gamtoos river, is often considered to be a subspecies of G.nitida , which never leaves its juvenile phase (a possible case of neoteny ). The armstrongii plant has rough, tuberculate, recurved, purely distichous leaves, and a solitary unbranched inflorescence. Genetically, it is more closely related to the more restricted species Gasteria ellaphiae , Gasteria vlokii and Gasteria glauca . The flowers of all four species are almost identical. This species occurs over an extensive coastal range of
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