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Colony of Aloe ferox plants, Jansenville, Eastern Cape province. Robust stems clothed in persistent, dried leaves present rosettes of erect to spreading leaves, rarely recurved. Photograph: Neil R. Crouch.
Source publication
Aloe candelabrum A.Berger (Asphodelaceae: Alooideae), a stately, single-stemmed species from the KwaZulu-Natal province in eastern South Africa, which had been included in the synonymy of A. ferox Mill. for some years, is reinstated. The entire distribution range of A. candelabrum falls within the Maputoland-Pondoland Region of Endemism on the east...
Contexts in source publication
Context 1
... ferox is a species very widely distributed in the southern and east-central parts of South Africa, as well as southern Lesotho. It is similarly distinguished by a tall [2-3(-5)m] erect, un- branched stem with persistent dried leaves and a terminal rosette (Figure 7). The leaves of Aloe ferox are typically erect to erectly spreading (rarely up to 100cm), with marginal teeth of ca. ...
Context 2
... lower surface bears a few spines in the median line near the apex (Figure 9). The candelabrum-like inflor- escence is 5-to 8-branched (Figure 7), generally with all racemes of approximately equal length, al- though one may be prominently taller. Flowers are mostly scarlet to orange, rarely white, and ca. ...
Similar publications
The KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa has a varied topography, geology and climate and presents diverse habitats that support a rich and diverse flora. Aloes are well represented in KwaZulu-Natal, with four genera [ Aloe L., Aloiampelos Klopper & Gideon F.Sm., Aloidendron (A.Berger) Klopper & Gideon F.Sm. and Aristaloe Boatwr. & J.C.Manning] a...
Citations
... If so, this character would point to A. × caesia and not A. ferox. But both rosettes show inflorescences with 13-14 branches each, a character that did not fit neither with A. x caesia nor with A. ferox (as both taxa have a maximum of 8 branches: Smith & al., 2016;Figueiredo & Smith, 2019). Unfortunately, the reports of the other two Iberian localities of A. ferox (Pyke, 2008, Verloove & al., 2019 do not include images of these plants, but we are presenting here pictures of individuals from these two locations (Barcelona and Reus). ...
In this work, we provide a second locality of Aloe × caesia as alien plant in the Iberian Peninsula and the taxonomic identity of previous records of Aloe ferox is discussed. Available information did not allow us to confirm former records of A. ferox, which might be actually A. × caesia; however, some plants show uncertain traits, so confirmation of their identity requires further analysis. Key words: alien flora, Aloe, hybrids, Mediterranean basin, succulent plants. RESUMEN: En este trabajo se aporta una segunda localidad de Aloe × caesia como planta alóctona en la Península Ibérica y se discute la identidad taxonómica de citas previas de Aloe ferox. La información disponi-ble no permite confirmar las citas previas de A. ferox. Hay indicios que sugieren que estas plantas correspon-derían también a A. × caesia, pero algunas muestran caracteres inciertos, por lo que la confirmación de su identidad requiere un análisis más detallado. Palabras clave: Aloe, flora alóctona, híbridos, Mediterráneo, plantas crasas. Known and new data on Aloe × caesia
... Recognition of Aloe candelabrum as distinct from Aloe ferox Mill. (Smith et al. 2016), in the synonymy of which it is sometimes included, implies that Aloe ferox, a predominantly Western and Eastern Cape species that just enters the south-western Free State and southern Lesotho, does not occur in KwaZulu-Natal. ...
The KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa has a varied topography, geology and climate and presents diverse habitats that support a rich and diverse flora. Aloes are well represented in KwaZulu-Natal, with four genera [ Aloe L., Aloiampelos Klopper & Gideon F.Sm., Aloidendron (A.Berger) Klopper & Gideon F.Sm. and Aristaloe Boatwr. & J.C.Manning] and 49 taxa occurring in the province. Fourteen of these are endemic and eleven near-endemic to the province. A floristic treatment of the aloes of KwaZulu-Natal is presented in the form of a synoptic review. Included are an identification key to the aloes that occur naturally in the province, species-level distribution maps and accompanying images, so providing for the first time, an atlas of aloe occurrence in this part of the subcontinent.
... The stem is covered in a fire-resistant skirt of old dry leaves (Reynolds 1950;van Wyk and Smith 2014). It is distributed in South Africa from the Western Cape province with a few localities in the extreme southwestern part of Free State and southwestern Lesotho (Fig. 1, Smith et al. 2016). Here, A. ferox occurs in a wide variety of vegetation types, e.g., succulent Karoo and Thicket (van Wyk and van Wyk 1997). ...
Sustainable harvesting practices are important for conserving plant species and their habitats, but also the livelihoods of those that depend on them. Aloe ferox, a valuable natural resource harvested for its leaves, is the focus of a recent rural development initiative in the Eastern Cape of South Africa. This has the potential to benefit poor residents through a high-value, sustainable, export market. We characterize the social and ecological components of the system, in order to evaluate the potential for effective natural resource management. We interviewed aloe tappers to obtain information on their dependence on the A. ferox industry and harvesting practices. We assessed the harvesting pressure on A. ferox populations, sampling plants at three plots positioned along each of four transects at distances of 1.5, 3.45, and 7 km from the factory, grouping plants into two size classes: small (height <0.5 m) and large (>0.5 m). We investigated the influence of proximity to the factory and plant size class on the likelihood and intensity of harvest. The majority of aloe tappers were women, unemployed, and in receipt of government welfare grants, and the main reason for harvesting A. ferox was to generate a cash income for their daily needs. Training guidelines did not appear to be followed, with aloe tappers leaving on average 6 leaves, rather than the recommended 18–20 leaves, allowing insufficient time to pass between harvesting episodes and harvesting outside of the prescribed wetter periods. In line with training guidelines, aloe tappers were targeting larger plants; however, against recommendations, smaller plants were also regularly harvested. Harvesting pressure decreased with increasing distance from the factory. We discuss requirements to ensure A. ferox is harvested at sustainable levels in the region, particularly in light of a possible regional roll out of the program, and provide recommendations for regulating use and better training.
