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Duvalia aff. caespitosa - East Cape
Hotnotstoonjie!
The succulent Asclepiads have always fascinated me. The shapes of the stems and flowers are interesting enough, yet it is the floral fragrances that set this group apart. When a plants floral fragrance can described in terms of smelly socks, dead mice, old cheese and other less than appetizing smelly things you have a group of plants which gives the term "conversation piece" a whole different meaning. Definitely one needs a sense of humor to fully appreciate these plants.
We encountered Duvalia caespitosa on our 2005 trip to South Africa in an arid, rocky zone where the plant inhabited the cracks between large boulders. We noticed this plant but we were prejudices against it because we seldom had much success growing succulent asclepiads our humid climate before. It was not until we returned home when someone gave us a piece and we grew it successfully that it was once again proved that prejudices and assumptions always need reexamining. The pinky sized, rambling stems are covers with soft pointed projections that look menacing but have no bite. Dime sized, star shaped flowers are a glossy, dark, chocolate color and can occur throughout the growing season. The fragrance of the flowers can be described in various ways but I liken it to aged bleu-cheese. I however leave it up to each connoisseur to describe the aroma in their own way.
