Monsonia is a genus of plants in the family Geraniaceae and covers all 14 species of the former genus Sarcocaulon. It is named after Lady Anne Monson, an English botanist and collector of plants and insects around Cape Town in South Africa. The genus consists of herbs or undershrubs, often with simple stems from woody rootstock or deep taproot.
Species are distributed in Africa, western Asia, and eastern India. They occur in regions where dry climatic conditions prevail and are found on rocky hillsides or mountainsides, gravel, outcrops of weathered quartzite, and red dune sands.
Members of the family Geraniaceae have long been widely cultivated for their horticultural value. Succulent lovers much seek after the members of Monsonia. The fleshy branches covered with wax are flammable and, even when wet, can be used as kindling to light fires.
Growing Conditions and General Care
Monsonia species are generally easy to grow. However, except for Monsonia camdeboensis and Monsonia vanderietiae, they rarely produce an extensive new root system once transplanted. Transplanted specimens flower sporadically in cultivation but survive for many years.
Seed-grown plants, in contrast, thrive and flower prolifically in cultivation. The ideal cultivation medium for most species is silt collected from the sides of road culverts to which a small amount of bone meal and some ordinary sandy garden soil has been added. Seeds should be sown just under the surface of the soil in large seed trays. They should be planted into individual containers when they are about two years old.
All Monsonia species require direct sunlight when in full growth. Seedlings need to be regularly watered during active growth and occasionally during dormancy.
Monsonia salmoniflora has a good deal of potential for the landscaping trade. The species is easily and relatively quickly grown from seed and is long-lived.
Source: pza.sanbi.org
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