Sierra Leone : Photos

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Leo_Breman posted a photo:

In its native lands of tropical Africa the leaves of this plant were once used as a fish-trap: The large flat leaves were placed in a stream or pond, fish will then often hide under the large floating leaves, and the fish and leaf could then be scooped up in one go by the fisherman.

This accession differs slightly from the newer accession I am growing from seed; the hairs on the leaves are more numerous but less long.
Compared to other individuals of Palisota, this one also seems to have a more this elongated panicle, although the dimensions fall well within the natural variation in this species.

Leo_Breman posted a photo:

Origin:I originally acquired this plant in 2006 by dividing a clump that was growing in the tropical greenhouse at the Larenstein Agricultural College in Deventer. It was labelled as P. thyrsiflora, which is actually a synonym of P. hirsuta, which this plant is most certainly not. P. hirsuta is possibly th most common Palisota species of west Africa, but it is a rather giant member of the Commelinaceae, growing up to 4m high and having a stem with long internodes.

On Cultivation: Not an easy plant to grow in the home situation. It likes high humidity and low light. I think it is something for a damp bathroom. The relative humidity should stay above 60-70%. It will immediately wilt in direct sunlight -it really wants shade! The substrate I'm using is an extremely light mix of normal potting soil, vermiculite and milled sphagnum moss.

It is a great plant for a large terrarium, but with large I do mean large; over 60cm high and wide. If I were asked to come up with something appropriate, I would say it would be perfect for a terrarium for a Fire Skink (Riopa fernandi), considering it occurs in the same range and habitat. Notwithstanding, a fire skink will probably burrow into the roots in a terrarium situation. That should be avoidable, however, by planting the plant on a very thin layer of soil (over a flat stone or something).

English: African Spiderwort ?
Edo: Ìghíguẹ̀wé*
Mokpwe: Ugbodo

*This word is used for all species of Palisota in the Edo language.

Check out this collection of images of wild plants: www.westafricanplants.senckenberg.de/root/index.php?page_...;

Leo_Breman posted a photo:

Collected from wild plants growing near Accra, Ghana.

This is a species of understory plant growing in the shade of west African rainforests. It is not uncommon.

It is native to Cameroon, C.A.R., Congo, Côte d'Ivoire, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Ghana, Liberia, Nigeria, Sierra Leone, Togo, and Uganda.
No proof = Benin? DRC? Rwanda? Burundi?

There is a variegated variety of this species as well (in Thailand). There are also reports from the beginning of the 20th century of a cultivated version with a less densely flowering, more spike-like panicle. This, however, seems somewhat questionable. It might be caused due to a mis-I.D., or it might be due to differences caused by manner of cultivation; and furthermore wild populations seem to have a very variable panicle anyhow.

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Seven Hills Foundation posted a photo:

Images automaticaly loaded from flickr with tags : (sierraleone)