Abstract:
We describe a new subspecies of Gasteria croucheri
(Hook.f.) Baker from northern Pondoland, Eastern
Cape, an obligate cremnophyte belonging to Gasteria
Duval sect. Longifl orae Haw. ser. Longifoliae Haw. The
members of this series are all characterized by narrow,
elliptical, comparatively dull-coloured fl owers in which
the swelling in the upper half approximates the rather
unpronounced basal gasteriform portion (Van Jaarsveld
et al. 1994). Mature specimens of the new taxon produce
both leaves (up to 1.5 m long) and fl owers (up to 50 mm
long) that are exceptionally long in the genus. To date,
plants have only been found in the Msikaba and Mtentu
River systems adjacent to Mkambati Game Reserve
(Figure 8), the topography of which is characterized by
rugged plateaux of 100–500 m, dissected deeply by narrow
river gorges. This distribution falls within the Pondoland
Centre of Plant Endemism (Van Wyk & Smith
2001). Specimens grow on cliffs both fully exposed on
southern aspects, as well as within the shaded margins of
riverine forest. It is a clump-forming species with long,
angular and often sickle-shaped leaves, most of which
are pendulous in mature specimens (Figure 9).
