> Yes, I've heard of ``D.coccicaulis.'' It first came to my attention
> several years ago in one of Allen Lowrie's seed lists. I bought some,
> found it a ready germinator, and was pleased with it. It is, however,
> not a valid botanical name. Clearly some silly person thought it would
> be great fun to invalidly stick a bogus name on a plant. By now, many
> people have become confused. By my best attempts at identification
> (and Jan's help) it seems the best guess is a vigorous variety of
> _D.natalensis_. The identification is relatively straightforward. The
> second runner-up is possibly _D.dielsiana_, but I think _D.natalensis_
> is more likely.
I've grown both D.coccicaulis and D.natalensis, the latter from 3
different locations in the Natal Province, and I do not believe these are
the same species. If D.coccicaulis is a robust form of any species, I
would say D.dielsiana. After having had a quick look at S.African
Drosera herbaria at Kew and Paris, I think there might be much more than
we imagine in this D.coccicaulis/ dielsiana/ natalensis/ aliciae/
venusta/ admirabilis/ cuneifolia/ affinis/ nidiformis/ etc. group. Well,
at least we have seen that there is still much confusion and that some
GOOD sorting out is needed. Knowing from experience how hard it is to
study these small rosetted Drosera through herborized specimens, I would
say that extensive field work would be needed. Hopefully, our friend Eric
Green in S.Africa is getting a good idea of how this group works in the
wild and maybe we'll read articles of his in the near future, clearing up
this group and passing us some of his experience.
Fernando Rivadavia
Sao Paulo, Brazil