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Stayneria

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Stayneria
Stayneria neilii
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Kingdom: Plantae
Clade: Tracheophytes
Clade: Angiosperms
Clade: Eudicots
Order: Caryophyllales
Family: Aizoaceae
Subfamily: Ruschioideae
Tribe: Ruschieae
Genus: Stayneria
L.Bolus
Species:
S. neilii
Binomial name
Stayneria neilii
(L.Bolus) L.Bolus
Synonyms[1]
  • Ruschia neilii L.Bolus
  • Stayneria littlewoodii L.Bolus

Stayneria (or 'white-flowered mesemb'[2][3]) is a genus of flowering plants belonging to the family Aizoaceae.[4] It contains a single species, Stayneria neilii.[4] It is in the subfamily Ruschioideae and the tribe Ruschieae.[5]

It is native to the Cape Provinces of the South African Republic.[4] It grows on acid, quartzitic sandstone soil among rocks with taller shrubby vegetation.[6]

Conservation status

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It is listed as Vulnerable on the IUCN Red Data List due to habitat loss caused by the expansion of nearby vineyards.[6]

Description

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Stayneria neilii is a stout woody shrub of up to 1.5 m in height, bearing reddish brown stems with persistent hardened remains of old leaves. The stem-clasping leaves are dark green, three-sided with a sharp bottom edge and smell like berries. Fragrant leaves in the Aizoaceae family are uncommon and therefore this is an almost unique characteristic rarely found in other genera. Small daisy-like white to pink flowers are arranged in terminal groups of three to seven and borne during the winter and early spring (July to September in the southern hemisphere).[6]

Taxonomy

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The genus name of Stayneria is in honour of Frank J. Stayner (1907–1981), a South African horticulturist and specialist in succulents. He was also the curator at the Karoo botanical garden.[7][8] The Latin specific epithet of neilii refers to the 20th century South African dairy farmer and nurseryman Mr Neil.[6] The genus was first described and published in J. S. African Bot. Vol.27 on page 47 in 1960.[4] The species was published in J. S. African Bot. Vol.33 on page 306 in 1967.[1]

The genus is recognized by the United States Department of Agriculture and the Agricultural Research Service, but they do not list any known species.[9]

References

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  1. ^ a b "Stayneria neilii (L.Bolus) L.Bolus". Plants of the World Online. Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  2. ^ "White-flowered Mesemb (Stayneria neilii)". iNaturalist Canada. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  3. ^ "White-Flowered Mesemb (Stayneria neilii) - Plants | Candide Gardening". Candide. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  4. ^ a b c d "Stayneria L.Bolus | Plants of the World Online | Kew Science". Plants of the World Online. Retrieved 19 May 2021.
  5. ^ Hartmann, H. E. K. (January 2017). Aizoaceae. pp. 1177–1178.
  6. ^ a b c d "Stayneria neilii | PlantZAfrica". pza.sanbi.org. Retrieved 2021-06-27.
  7. ^ "Stayneria | CasaBio". casabio.org. Retrieved 18 December 2021.
  8. ^ Burkhardt, Lotte (2018). Verzeichnis eponymischer Pflanzennamen – Erweiterte Edition [Index of Eponymic Plant Names – Extended Edition] (pdf) (in German). Berlin: Botanic Garden and Botanical Museum, Freie Universität Berlin. doi:10.3372/epolist2018. ISBN 978-3-946292-26-5. Retrieved 1 January 2021.
  9. ^ "Genus Stayneria L. Bolus". npgsweb.ars-grin.gov. Retrieved 18 December 2021.