Oxalis flava is a South African species-complex found on sandy flats from Namaqualand southwards to the Cape Peninsula and eastwards to Riverdale. Salter has described it as a variable species with many different varieties. It has very interesting basal leaves that are jointed and have 2 to 12 narrow leaflets, often folded lengthwise. Flowers are solitary, yellow, white or pale rosy violet, often purple on the outer margin. This species is fall blooming.
The form below has yellow flowers and 5-7 narrow leaflets. It blooms better planted in a deep pot. Photo 1 taken by Mary Sue Ittner shows the flower before it opens and photo 2 by Bob Rutemoeller shows the plant. Photo 3-4 were taken by Nhu Nguyen. Photo 5 from Mary Sue Ittner the bulbs on a 1 cm grid.
The form below has yellow flowers and numerous very narrow leaves. Bulbs were were originally collected in seasonally moist soil in heavy clay on the Nieuwoudtville plateau. The photos below are from Mary Sue Ittner who received bulbs from Johannes-Ulrich Urban that were identified as this species. The fifth photo shows this form blooming in October 2013 in a pot in a raised bed. It had not been repotted for a number of years and had been kept dry in summer. Over the years Oxalis luteola has made its way into the pot and each year Oxalis flava blooms first and is eventually joined by Oxalis luteola. The photo shows both in glorious bloom on a warm sunny day. The last photo shows the bulbs on a 1 cm square grid.
The form below has pink flowers and crinkled leaves. The blooms appeared on the surface of the soil, followed a week or so later by the first sign of leaves. Photos by Mary Sue Ittner. The last shows the bulbs on a 1 cm square grid.
The form below has glaucous, lupine like leaves and pink flowers. It was once known as Oxalis lupinifolia which is now considered a synonym of Oxalis flava. Photos below were taken by Nhu Nguyen of this form in bloom, but the pot seems to be a mix of this form and the crinkled leaf form above.
Photos below were taken by Mary Sue Ittner of plants obtained from Telos Rare Bulbs as Oxalis lupinifolia. The last photo shows the bulbs on a 1 cm grid. After a couple of years a yellow flower appeared. It is impossible to sort out from the bulbs which is the yellow one.
The form below has somewhat crinkled leaves on long petioles and white flowers. It is a fairly small variant from Nieuwoudtville. Photos by Christiaan van Schalkwyk.
Oxalis index - Miscellaneous Oxalis - Oxalis hirta - Oxalis obtusa - Oxalis pes-caprae - Oxalis purpurea - South African oxalis A-B - South African oxalis C -South African oxalis D-E - South African oxalis F-G - South African oxalis H-K - South African oxalis L-M - South African oxalis N-O - South African oxalis P - South African oxalis R-S - South African oxalis T-Z - South American oxalis