''Lobostemon cinereus'', the ash healthbush, is a species belonging to the forget-me-not family. It is

endemic Endemism is the state of a species being found in a single defined geographic location, such as an island, state, nation, country or other defined zone; organisms that are indigenous to a place are not endemic to it if they are also found elsew ...

to the Cape Provinces of

South Africa South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...

Description

This species is similar in appearance to '' Lobostemon trichotomus''. It is a shrublet that grows up to in height. The elongated lance shaped leaves are stalkless leaves are somewhat leathery and are covered in ash-coloured leaves on both the upper and lower surfaces. These hairs are the basis of its species name (with cinis meaning ashes in

Latin Latin (, or , ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally a dialect spoken in the lower Tiber area (then known as Latium) around present-day Rome, but through the power of the ...

). The leaves also have bulbous-based hairs on lower surface. Flowers are present between August and November. They are white, or sometimes pale pink, and are borne in

cymes An inflorescence is a group or cluster of flowers arranged on a stem that is composed of a main branch or a complicated arrangement of branches. Morphologically, it is the modified part of the shoot of seed plants where flowers are formed on ...

. They may be hairy or hairless on the outer surface. The staminal scales are slightly triangular with staminal scales.

Distribution and habitat

It is found from

Port Nolloth Port Nolloth is a town and small domestic seaport in the Namaqualand region on the northwestern coast of South Africa, northwest of Springbok, Northern Cape, Springbok. It is the seat of the Richtersveld Local Municipality. The port was previousl ...

to Heerenlogement and the

Cedarberg The Cederberg mountains are located near Clanwilliam, approximately 300 km north of Cape Town, South Africa at about . The mountain range is named after the endangered Clanwilliam cedar (''Widdringtonia wallichii''), which is a tree end ...

, where it grows on sandy flats and slopes.

References

Boraginaceae Endemic flora of the Cape Provinces {{Boraginaceae-stub