There are more than 200 species of Oxalis in South Africa and 270 varieties and probably many new species as well. The only handbook on the Southern African species, by Salter, is almost sixty years old and out of print so there are many challenges in identifying them. Cape Plants, a conspectus of the Cape flora of South Africa by Peter Goldblatt and John Manning lists 118 in the Cape Floral Kingdom but there is only a brief botanical description, location sometimes with habitat information, and time of bloom in this book.
South African species N-O are found on this wiki page.
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 P - South African Oxalis R-S - South African Oxalis T-Z - South American Oxalis – Miscellaneous Oxalis - Oxalis index
Oxalis namaquana is usually found in moist places. Leaves are in a rosette with 3 linear or oblong leaflets. Flowers are bright yellow with a short broad tube. The first photo shows this species blooming in Namaqualand in a wet spot in a wet year (August 2001). The second two habitat pictures were taken in Namaqualand in September 2006. The last two photos below are of bulbs from Johannes-Ulrich Urban he named Uli-54. His description of them as seen in habitat was "tiny leaves, yellow flowers, low in habitat forming an extremely low carpet of leaves very dense on the ground, growing mat like over rocks in only a thin layer of soil fairly close to running seasonal water. Very large bright yellow flowers. One of the best Oxalis seen blooming in the wild, near Leliefontein. This area has a relatively high altitude and I am sure it gets some frost. Bulbinella species and Kniphofia species growing there also." It has subsequently been identified as Oxalis namaquana and is growing and blooming well in Northern California. Photos by Mary Sue Ittner.
Oxalis obliquifolia is found from Ethiopica to South Africa. Plants are 1 flowered, rose, violet, or white with a yellow tube. Photo by John Lonsdale.
Oxalis obtusa is a long blooming winter growing Oxalis from South Africa with many bright colored pastel flowers. In the Little Karoo in South Africa in September 2003 a large patch was seen in bloom making the area look apricot-orange from a distance. From a distance they all looked the same color but up close there were many variations. Here are two. Photos by Bob Rutemoeller.
There were many variations in colors seen in populations photographed near Middelpos in the Roggeveld September 2006 by Mary Sue Ittner. Ones growing under shrubs where they had some protection seemed more vibrant. The last picture shows them in mass blooming along with other spring flowers.
Habitat pictures from Namaqualand taken by Bob Rutemoeller and Mary Sue Ittner are shown below.
The first photo shows scanned flowers of the different colors of Oxalis obtusa in Ron Vanderhoff's collection. The next two pictures are two color forms growing in Northern California, descendants of ones grown by Michael Vassar, photographs by Mary Sue Ittner and Bob Rutemoeller. The last photograph by Mary Sue Ittner shows four varieties blooming in a cold frame winter 2005.
The first two photos below were taken by Kristina Van Wert of flowers in the Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens collection. The third photo was taken by Bill Dijk. The third photo was taken by Liz Waterman of a plant she grew from a Telos purchase. The last photo was contributed by the UC Botanical Garden.
Oxalis obtusa MV4719d was collected by Michael Vassar "30km up road to Witteberg Mtn, south of Laingsburg." The flowers are straw colored, with an orange-pink central ring and yellow center. The first photo shows the flower; the second shows the markings on the reverse. Photos by Michael Mace.
Oxalis obtusa MV5005a was collected 10 km n of Matjiesfontein and is a long blooming dependable variety in Northern California. Photo by Mary Sue Ittner.
Oxalis obtusa MV5051 photo by Kristina Van Wert (Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens) of a Michael Vassar accession of one described as having flowers that are light copper orange with veining and a yellow center that was collected at Vanrhynshoek.
Oxalis obtusa MV5516 photo by Kristina Van Wert (Mendocino Coast Botanical Gardens) of a Michael Vassar accession of one collected 7.5 km S of Nieuwoudtville. This variety has light yellow flowers above the leaves. Similar to this one is Oxalis obtusa MV5401. It came with the name O. sanderiana attached to it, a name which does not exist. Photo by Christiaan van Schalkwyk.
Oxalis obtusa MV 6235 is a Michael Vassar accession found west of Sutherland with copper flowers with a greenish center and small leaves. It has been a good performer for me in Northern California blooming for a long time in spring. Photo by Mary Sue Ittner.
Oxalis obtusa MV 7085 is a Michael Vassar accession with salmon flowers on a low spreading plant. Photo by Mary Sue Ittner.
Oxalis obtusa MV 7087 is a Michael Vassar accession that is described as having large pink flowers with a yellow center. I'd call them more of a peachy pink. Photo by Mary Sue Ittner.
Oxalis obtusa 'Elizabeth' is an attractive yellow form with an orange central ring. Photo by Michael Mace.
Oxalis obtusa Namaqualand form:
These are photographs from the "typical large flowered Namaqualand form" of Oxalis obtusa. The plants are generally small, 5 to 8 cm. in height, with the large flowers extended high above the leaves. The first two are from Concordia (north of Springbok), and the third from near Hondeklipbaai. The last is from a plant received as Oxalis comosa, which it is not. As with all other forms of Oxalis obtusa, the bulbs look like raisins: small, black, and with lots of ridges. Photos by Christiaan van Schalkwyk.
Here is a magnificent white form of Oxalis obtusa, from Springbok. Also a dwarf pink form, and one named 'Yellow & Red'. Photos by Christiaan van Schalkwyk.
As is the case with many other Oxalis species, there is a great deal of variation not only in flower colour, but also in leaf shape, of specimens of Oxalis obtusa. Normally such differences would be small within a population and more marked between populations, but the first two pictures show differences in flower colour and leaf size of plants in Grootvleipas (Namaqualand). The third photo is of a yellow form of O. obtusa from Springbok. The bulbs are still immature, and the leaves show different stages of development. Note the prescence of the short broad immature leaves and the longer slender adult ones on the same plant (bottom right).
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 P - South African Oxalis R-S - South African Oxalis T-Z - South American Oxalis – Miscellaneous Oxalis - Oxalis index