Plumbago zeylanica L.
Eng.: Ceylon leadwort, doctor bush, wild leadwort.
Climbing shrub, with only main branches woody, angular-striated, 0.3-2.5 m in height. Leaves ovate, 2,5-13 × 1-6 cm, acute, narrowed abruptly at the petiole; petiole 0,2-1(2) cm long with amplexicaule dilated base, glabrous or pubescent. Flowers densely arranged into spikes, 3-35 cm long, often branched; peduncles with sessile glands. Rachis of the spike often pubescent or glandular. Bracts oval to lanceolate, acute, 3-7 mm long, 3 times shorter than the calyx. Calyx tubular, 1-1.5 cm long, very short teeth. Corolla white, gamopetalous, 17-33 mm in diameter and tube 12-28 mmm long, up to 2 times longer than the calyx, 5-lobed, lobes 6-9 × 3-5 mm, cuneate-retrorse, slightly mucronate. Stamens free. Style slender, glabrous. Fruit a capsule of about 7-8 mm, with reddish-brown or brownish-black seeds.
Flowering:
July to October
Fruiting:
August to November.
Habitat:
Rocky soils on mountain slopes and plateaux. From sea level up to 2,000 m in altitude. It is a cultivated species.
Distribution:
Most probably originated from southern Asia, however nowadays it is a widespread species across the tropics worldwide. Given its highly localised distribution in North Africa, it is highly probable that this could be a native species to the mountains near the Red Sea in Sudan and SE Egypt.
Conservation status:
A rare species but widely distributed. Currently, it has not been assessed at a global level in the IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. In the updated red list of Egypt (Shaltout & Bedair, 2023) it has been considered as Endangered (EN).
