Not uncommon in cultivation, though usually under its synonym Stapelia engleriana, this species is worth growing by virtue of its softly-pubescent, 4-5-angled, divaricately branched stems. An added attraction is its unusual flower: glossy, dark mahogany, with strongly reflexed corolla lobes giving the impression of small chocolate donuts hanging from the stems. Typical of Stapelia, however, their carrion-like fragrance is not particularly appetizing except to fly pollinators, one of whom did us the favor of self-pollinating the parent of this offering. We are therefore able to offer second-generation seedlings from self-pollination of HBG 56847, a cutting of a plant collected by Darrel Plowes (6106), 30 km. SW of Merweville, E. Cape, S. Africa. $5.
Published in the Cactus and Succulent Journal, Vol. 74 (2), March - April, 2002