''Aspilia kotschyi'' is an annual

herbaceous Herbaceous plants are vascular plants that have no persistent woody stems above ground. This broad category of plants includes many perennials, and nearly all annuals and biennials. Definitions of "herb" and "herbaceous" The fourth edition of t ...

species with ovate to narrowly lanceolate leaves and dark red-purple flowers commonly found Tropical Africa. It has a variety, ''Aspilia kotschyi'' var. ''alba'' which has white flowers.

Description

Leaves are simple and opposite in arrangement and borne from the stem; leaf-blade is ovate to narrowly lanceolate, 3–16 cm long and 1–4 cm wide. Inflorescence is

capitulum capitulum (plural capitula) may refer to: *the Latin word for chapter ** an index or list of chapters at the head of a gospel manuscript ** a short reading in the Liturgy of the Hours *** derived from which, it is the Latin for the assembly known ...

type, solitary, axillary or sessile clustered around the upper surface of leaves, it has ovoid

bract In botany, a bract is a modified or specialized leaf, especially one associated with a reproductive structure such as a flower, inflorescence axis or cone scale. Bracts are usually different from foliage leaves. They may be smaller, larger, or of ...

s and small dark purple-brown ray and disc flowers; phyllary is green but brownish around the base.

Distribution

Endemic to

Tropical Africa Although tropical Africa is mostly familiar to the West for its rainforests, this biogeographic realm of Africa is far more diverse. While the tropics are thought of as regions with hot moist climates, which are caused by latitude and the tropi ...

, it occurs from Senegal eastwards towards Ethiopia and southwards up to Zimbabwe.

References

Flora of West Tropical Africa Heliantheae {{Heliantheae-stub