Introduction

Boophone disticha is considered a succulent because it has a bulb that emerges from the soil making a visible succulent stem. The plant is leafless when in flower. They are fan-shaped and wavy.  The plant is native to multiple countries of southern Africa.

The Details

The inflorescence arises as a single stalk before the leaves. The red or pink flowers are borne in an umble like other memberss of the Amaryllis family. B. disticha is sometimes called the tumbleweed plant because the flowers dry up and fall off forming a spherical structure. The sphere can roll along the ground, thereby distributing seeds.

The plant is extremely poisonous and was used to make poison arrows. The name Boophone is from Greek meaning ox-killer.

Additional Reading: Boophone and Weevils