Ceropegia

syn. -

distribution:

Zambia: Lusaka Province

This species was cultivated in Europe for several years before it was recognized as a distinct, at that time unknown species, and finally was described scientifically in the year 2002.

Already at first glance this plant's apparently affinity to the species group among Ceropegia distincta and Ceropegia haygarthii is noticeable.

Ceropegia zambesiacea is an up to 2 m long, only rarely branching, twining climber with a normal shaped, non-succulent root stock. The internodes, the parts of the stem between the nodes, can grow up to 3 to 15 cm long.

The leaves are broad egg-shaped and have an conspicuous acute leaf tip, the leaf base is heart-shaped. They sit on an 0,6 to 1,4 cm long petiole and reach a length of 2,8 to 6,5 cm by a wide of 1,2 to 3 cm.

The flowers appear singly or in three- to five-flowered cymes. The are light in colour, mottled reddish brown, slightly swollen at the base, the petals are very broad, green, decorated with some smaller reddish brown spots. They are descibed aas odourless.

The mostly complete straight and only scarcely, slightly curved, flower tube separates Ceropegia zambesiaca from other, closely related species.

References:

- P. S. Masinde; U. Meve: Ceropegia zambesiaca (Apocynaceae: Asclepiadoideae — Ceropegieae), a new species from Zambia. Kew Bulletin Vol. 57 No. 1, 2002