Poison Bulb – Amaryllidaceae (Boophane didticha)
This is an extraordinary plant to find and see for the first time. It is not very high so can be well hidden in the grass and one can easily pass it by.
I found a lovely book called Wild Flowers of South Africa by Braam van Wyk. It has great pictures and information in it so for anyone who is interested in this part of nature, do look for it at your local bookstore.
The flowers usually appear first and once it dies off, the plant has very distinctive fan-shaped leaves.
They grow in bushveld and grassland areas and the flowers are sweetly scented.
It has a bulb which is partly exposed above ground and larger bulbs are estimated to be several centuries old.
The bulb is considered poisonous due to the presence of alkaloids but has been widely used in traditional medicine as a dressing for wounds after being soaked in linseed oil.
Exposure to flowers may cause headaches thought to be caused by the penetrating scent.
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