Botanical name

Eucomis autumnalis

Other names

Pineapple flower; Eucomis undulata; Pynappelblom (Afrikaans)

Family

Liliaceae OR Hyacinthaceae; bulbous plant; perennial

Dimensions

 

Description of stem

 

Description of leaves

Long, broad leaves with pointed ends and undulating edges

Description of flowers

Characteristic leafy coma crowning the inflorescence below which a cylindric spread of small lily-shaped yellow-green to whitish flowers, densely packed around a thick stalk; flowering from December to March

Description of seed/fruit

 

Description of roots

A brown, oval shaped bulb of up to 12 cm in diameter

Variation

 

 

 

Propagation and cultivation

 

Tolerances

 

Uses

Garden plant; decoctions of the bulb have been used for a variety of ailments

Ecological rarity

 

Pests and diseases

 

Other

 

Location

Open grassland, in hilly areas among rocks and trees

Distribution (SA provinces)

Limpopo, Mpumalanga, Gauteng, Free State, Eastern Cape

Country

South Africa

 


Eucomis autumnalis subsp.  clavata, Verlorenvallei; Photographed by Judd Kirkel

Eucomis autumnalis; Photographed by Jack Latti