Aloe mudenensis Reynolds, 1937

Klopper, Ronell R., Crouch, Neil R., Smith, Gideon F. & van Wyk, Abraham E., 2020, A synoptic review of the aloes (Asphodelaceae, Alooideae) of KwaZulu-Natal, an ecologically diverse province in eastern South Africa, PhytoKeys 142, pp. 1-88 : 1

NE Aloe mudenensis Reynolds

Common names.

Muden aloe (English); kleinaalwyn (Afrikaans); icena (Zulu).

Description.

Caulescent plants, 0.25-0.5 m tall; rosettes simple or sometimes in small groups. Stem sometimes absent, usually up to 0.8 m, unbranched, erect or sometimes decumbent, without persistent dried leaves. Leaves densely rosulate, spreading, bluish-green, paler on lower surface, with numerous irregularly scattered white oblong spots on both surfaces, spots sometimes in irregular transverse bands, sometimes lineate, lower surface sometimes without spots and lineate, ovate-lanceolate, attenuate, 25-30 cm long, 8-9 cm wide; margin horny, with pungent, deltoid, brown, usually straight teeth, up to 7 mm long, 10-20 mm apart; exudate clear, drying reddish-purple. Inflorescence up to 1 m high, erect, 4- to 8-branched from about middle or below. Racemes subcapitate, broadly cylindrical, slightly conical, ± 12 cm long, 8-9 cm wide, rather dense. Floral bracts 12-15 cm, 2-4 mm wide. Pedicels 20-25 cm long. Flowers: perianth salmon-orange, sometimes red, 25-35 mm long, 8 mm across ovary, abruptly constricted above ovary to form subglobose basal swelling, enlarging towards wide-open mouth, slightly decurved; outer segments free for 5-9 mm; stamens exserted to 4 mm; style exserted to 5 mm.

Flowering time.

June-July.

Habitat.

Valley bushveld and thicket on sandy loam. Lower areas of warm valleys.

Diagnostic characters.

Aloe mudenensis can be distinguished from other maculate aloes in KwaZulu-Natal ( Aloe dewetii , Aloe maculata subsp. maculata , Aloe parvibracteata , Aloe prinslooi , Aloe pruinosa , Aloe suffulta , Aloe umfoloziensis , Aloe vanrooyenii and Aloe viridiana ) by the short, usually erect stem, without persistent dried leaves. Rosettes are usually solitary or in small groups. Leaves are spreading, 25-30 × 8-9 cm and spotted on both surfaces, with the paler lower surface sometimes without spots and lineate. Marginal teeth are up to 7 mm long. The 4- to 8-branched inflorescence (up to 1 m high) has rather dense, cylindrical, yet terminally rounded racemes ( ± 12 × 8-9 cm) with spreading buds and flowers. Pedicels are 20-25 cm long. Flowers are salmon-orange, sometimes red, 25-35 mm long and with a subglobose basal swelling (8 mm diameter).

Conservation status.

Near-threatened. Threats include silviculture, agriculture (mainly sugarcane) and urban expansion, as well as overgrazing (L. von Staden pers. comm.).

Distribution.

KwaZulu-Natal midlands, on the Mpumalanga border with northern KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa and in Eswatini (Fig. 26 ).

Figures

Figure 26. Aloe mudenensis. Photo: G. W. Reynolds.