Lithops - Au Cactus Francophone

Lithops > Lithops
and as soon as one gets on the Loeriesfontein plateau L. Otzeniana appears.
As already mentioned L. pseudotruncatella is found on the Rusch mountains.
Another species, L. Schwantesii, grows at a height of 2210 metres in the Tiras
mountains, South West Africa.
L. Nelii has also a fairly large wide distribution, but its various habi
tats are more or less of the same nature, and are confined to a region where
rain seldom falls. It is found on the narrow strip, 3–35 miles broad, running
parallel with the coast from Cape Cross to the mouth of the Ugab River.
This species of Lithops differs from L. Ruschiorum, to which it is closely
related, in that it is only found in brackish soil covered with loose quartz
pebbles, whereas L. Ruschiorum, together with Crassula mesembrianthemopsis
and Anacampseros quinaria, is found on red quartzite hillocks. The roots of
this species, L. Nelii, are placed horizontally, whereas those of other Lithops Lithops > Lithops
species are vertical. As these plants grow in a very arid part of the country,
where rain seldom falls, the roots must be situated as near as possible to the
surface of the soil to be able to absorb whatever moisture reaches the soil
in the form of dew or mist. It appears that these plants live to a great age.
Clumps have been found to which no less than 150 remains of dry bodies
were attached. If one assumes that on account of the heavy mist prevailing on
this part of the coast, a new body was formed every year, then such a plant
would be about 150 years old. Most probably the plants are much older, since
it often happens that in certain years no growth whatsoever will take place.
A word should be said about the occurrence of L. salicola. This plant
grows near Lückhoff, O.F.S. and as far as is known in three different lo
calities, two of which are somewhat similar. Dr. Henrici of Fauresmith was
good enough to supply the following details about one of the two localities
“L. salicola grows, wherever I have seen it, on the edge of brak pans, not in
their middle, that is to say, at a place where the brak is not yet too concen
trated. These pans are probably a few days under water after heavy show
ers. On these occasions the plants are covered with mud and even by the
trained eye of a botanist cannot be discovered for weeks. Later on the surface
mass of this mud breaks to pieces, generally in hexagonal pieces (Fig. 5), the
edges curve away from the soil, and in the fissures first the plants call be
seen. Still later the whole surface crust breaks to pieces and you can again
find the plants. I think that something similar happens to L. Aucampiae or
sub species I found long ago in the alluvial ground of Bechuanaland. I visited
the other day a new habitat of L. salicola, about a fortnight after rain, and
we had trouble to see a few plants, although the owner told me that there
were many, and we were five people to look for them.” So far Dr. Henrici.
I personally visited the latter habitat at the beginning of the rainy season
(November, 1942), and there were thousands of these plants in the pan. You
could not put your foot down without treading on fairly large clumps, some
of which contained 10 20 bodies, and yet Dr. Henrici had difficulty in see
ing any of them after a rain (Figs. 6 and 7). The pan itself is quite exposed
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