Harveya speciosa

Harveya is a genus of parasitic plants found in southern Africa, Madagascar and the Mascarene Islands.  Harveya speciosa is a montane species found in the Drakensberg mountains of South Africa and the Maluti mountains of Lesotho.  It is a distinctive plant, mostly white to off-white.  It is said to grow up to a metre tall, but the plants observed in Lesotho were shorter than this, perhaps 300mm tall.  It has no chlorophyll and relies on parasitism to obtain nutrients to set seed.  It parasitizes a number of plants, and one plant often parasitises more than one host. 

European settlers ground the dried flowers to make ink and its common name is Ink Plant or Ink Flower.

The flowers turn black as they go over which was interesting to watch and paint. This piece is special to me as I painted the plant following an intensive search in the highlands, when living in Lesotho.

Image size: 420 x 525mm Portrait
Frame size: 604 x 719 mm

Medium: Watercolour 

Reference: The specimen was found off the Mountain Road in long grass in Lesotho which runs from Maseru to Thaba Tseka near Marakabei (which is close to the Mohale Dam) at an elevation of about 1700m.  I saw a number of plants in the area.

Collection: in New Zealand

Exhibited at the Shirley Sherwood Gallery of Botanical Art at Kew Royal Botanical Gardens, London, UK, 12 Oct 2013 - 05 Jan 2014.