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Babiana longicollis
Namib baboon root is a small tuberous geophyte from southwestern Namibia that survives the hot dry summer underground as a corm and flowers in winter. Its key to growing is a dry dormant period and very well-drained, gritty soil.
Babiana longicollis is a geophytic plant species of 10–15 cm (3.9–5.9 in) tall in the family Iridaceae. It has laterally flattened, pleated, almost hairless leaves and 3-5 mirror-symmetrical, greenish to purple flowers, that open between late June and early August and smell like sweet peas. It is endemic to southwestern Namibia. It is called Namib baboon root in English and Namib bobbejaantjie in Afrikaans.
The Namib baboon root grows in crevices on outcrops of granite in succulent steppe from Rosh Pinah to the Klinghardt Mountains in Namibia. It is considered rare in Namibia because it is known from only few locations, but it is not currently threatened by any particular development.
Baboon Root · Babiana angustifolia · Brandvlei Bobbejaantjie · Violet Scent Bobbejaantjie · Pakhuis Bobbejaantjie · Mini Rat Tail Bobbejaantjie · Nama Bobbejaantjie · Pink Bobejaantjie · Needleleaf Bobbejaantjie · Limestone Bobbejaantjie · Cederberg Bobbejaantjie · Cinnamon Bobbejaantjie
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Babiana longicollis by its contributors, under CC BY-SA 4.0; the excerpts and the care summary drawn from them are shared under the same licence.
The care summary was written by AI (Claude, Anthropic) from the sources on this page, with general growing knowledge where they are silent. Check before relying on it.
Life form, climate and native range: World Checklist of Vascular Plants, Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew (CC BY 3.0), reformatted; see Plants of the World Online.
