This subspecies is found only in the coastal plains of Namaqualand and of southern Namibia. Other Haemanthus forms are being found in Namibia that may be this taxon, in which case it is a rather variable entity.
Haemanthus pubescens arenicolus
Accession #1438
Superficially, the plant resembles Haemanthus coccineus. The bulb is different, having the shape of a vertically elongated egg, due in part to the tendency of the basal plate to persist from year to year, hence elongating vertically. The leaves are longer than they are wide, and may or may not have hairs on the abaxial leaf surface.
This subspecies is very rare in collections, but much sought-after. It would be nice if the Namibian Haemanthus species, especialy the one from Lüderitz, would have their status clarified somewhat.
D. Snijman (1984) "A Revision of The Genus Haemanthus L. (Amaryllidaceae)" Journal of South African Botany, Suppl. vol. 12. Trustees of the National Botanic Gardens of South Africa, publishers.
Other Sources of Information
Bulbs for Warm Climates, Thad M. Howard, University of Texas Press, Austin (2001).
Bulbs, Revised Edition, John E. Bryan, Timber Press, Portland (2002).
RHS Manual of Bulbs, John Bryan and Mark Griffiths, Eds., Timber Press, Portland (1995).
The Color Encyclopedia of Cape Bulbs, John Manning, Peter Goldblatt, & Dee Snijman, Timber Press, Portland and Cambridge (2002).
Cape Bulbs, Richard L. Doutt, Timber Press, Portland and Cambridge (1994).
Namaqualand. South African Wild Flower Guide 1, Annelise Le Roux & Ted Schelpe, Botanical Society of South Africa, Cape Town (1988).
Outeniqua. South African Wild Flower Guide 2, Audrey Moriarity, Botanical Society of South Africa, Cape Town (1982).
Karoo. South African Wild Flower Guide 6, David Shearing, Botanical Society of South Africa, Cape Town (1994).
West Coast. South African Wild Flower Guide 7, John Manning & Peter Goldblatt, Botanical Society of South Africa, Cape Town (1996).
Southern Overberg. South African Wild Flower Guide 8, Penny Mustart, Richard Cowling, Janice Albertyn, & Colin Patterson-Jones, Botanical Society of South Africa, Cape Town (1997).
Nieuwoudtville. South African Wild Flower Guide 9, John Manning & Peter Goldblatt, Botanical Society of South Africa, Cape Town (1997).
Shields
Gardens
