Massonia roggeveldensis seeds grow into a bulbous geophyte native to the desert or dry shrubland biome of the Roggeveld plateau and adjacent areas of the Northern Cape Province of South Africa. Named after the Roggeveld, a high plateau in the western part of the Karoo (Northern Cape), one of the most arid and botanically rich upland regions of South Africa. An inland Karoo-zone Massonia adapted to the cold, dry, continental conditions of the high Roggeveld plateau. Like all Massonia, produces only two flat leaves spread on the ground, with the compact inflorescence between them. Species of Massonia are among the first plants documented as pollinated by small rodents (gerbils). Named by Thunberg after Francis Masson (17411805). Family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae.

Full sun; very well-drained rocky or sandy desert/karoo soils; dry summer dormancy; cold dry winters Roggeveld plateau climate.

• Named after the Roggeveld plateau, Northern Cape high Karoo upland, arid and botanically rich
• Two flat leaves; compact inflorescence between them; desert-adapted Massonia of the inland Karoo
• Northern Cape Prov. (Roggeveld plateau) desert or dry shrubland biome; cold continental conditions
• Named after Francis Masson (Kew, 17411805); among first documented rodent-pollinated plants
• Full sun; Karoo rocky soils; dry summer; cold dry Roggeveld climate; Family Asparagaceae

Massonia roggeveldensis is the Roggeveld Cape bulb named for one of South Africa’s most botanically distinctive high-plateau landscapes, a cold-adapted and drought-tolerant Massonia of the inland Karoo bringing the ground-level floral display of the genus to one of the most extreme environments occupied by any species in the family.

IMPORTANT: Pictures show the adult plant, which is not for sale. The offer is only for seeds.