Desmidorchis retrospiciens
General description:
Desmidorchis retrospiciens (Ehrenb.) N.E.Br.,Über Pollen Asclep.: 12 (1831)
Synonyms:
- Caralluma retrospiciens (Ehrenb.) N.E.Br., Gard. Chron. III, 12: 370 (1892).
- Boucerosia russeliana Courbai ex Brongn., Bull. Soc. Bot. France 7: 900 (1860).
- Desmidorchis acutangula Decne., Ann. Sci. Nat., Bot. II, 9: 265 (1838).
Conservation status:
NE
Diagnostic description:
Perennial herb, erect, up to 1 m tall, massive, branched, succulent. Stems acutely 4-angled, grey or glaucous, angles with broad wings and small recurved teeth, glabrous. Flowers blackish-purple, in terminal sessile umbels, several clustered together forming a large compound globose umbel, 4-6 cm in diameter. Pedicels 1.5 - 2.5 cm long. Corolla blackish-purple, not fleshy, rotate. Corona dark purple, pubescent.
Distribution:
Tanzania to Sudan, Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Yemen. The Farasan Islands (Farasan Al-Kabir-Sajid).