Metalasia aurea

While the Senecio polyanthemoides have started to go to seed, yellow flowers still abound in the veld – the Metalasia aurea (geelsteekbossie) are looking particularly beautiful right now.

These beautiful stands of bright yellow flowers brighten the verges of the roads and spill over banks.

The yellow is a particularly deep shade that is enhanced by the early morning or late afternoon sunlight.

I have not seen the Metalasia aurea growing in such abundance for a very long time – again I think it is the late winter and early spring rain which accounts for this long-lasting flush of beauty.

Clearly these amorous beetles approve of the flowers too!

I have mentioned before that we are blessed with a variety of yellow indigenous flowers that brighten up the countryside. The blooms of the Bitou bushes still abound; lower down though are beautiful stands of other yellow flowers that create swathes of yellow along the sides of the roads and among the veld grass: Metalasia aurea. It is commonly known in Afrikaans as either geelsteekbossie or geelblombos.

Metalasia aurea is a densely branched shrub with needle-like, prickly leaves arranged in tight, twisted knots.

The small flowers are arranged in flat topped clusters composed of papery bracts. They attract a variety of insects and are indigenous to the Eastern Cape.

Note: Click on an image for a larger view.