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Bowiea
Bowiea is a genus of bulbous, succulent climbers from dry parts of eastern and southern Africa; the commonly grown member is Bowiea volubilis, which climbs by twining green stems from a large bulb. It needs bright light, very sparing watering, and a dry rest period.
Bowiea, commonly known as climbing-onion, is a genus of extremely poisonous, bulbous, perennial, succulent plants which thrive in dry and desert regions of eastern and southern Africa, ranging from Uganda to South Africa. It is native to a region stretching from Kenya to Cape Province. It is the 14th most commonly sold medicinal plant in South Africa, used to treat various health conditions. Due to massive harvesting, populations of this plant have been significantly reduced. Due to its unique appearance, it is sometimes cultivated as a houseplant.
The genus contains a single species, Bowiea volubilis, named after the nineteenth-century British plant collector at Kew, James Bowie. The specific epithet means twisting or winding in Latin.
Text excerpted from the Wikipedia article Bowiea 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.
