Haworthia minima var. poellnitziana

H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift North


Haworthia minima var. poellnitziana (Uitewaal) M.B.Bayer

poellnitziana: in honour of Dr. K. von Poellnitz.

H. minima var. poellnitziana is a large robust form of minima. Rosettes can reach more than 15 in diameter and plants remains usually solitary. It has slender, long leaves up to 18 cm long. Leaves are grey-green in colour and less "blue" than minima, while in maxima (pumila) the leaves are dark brownish green. 

Distribution map

H. minima var. poellnitziana grows on the western border of minima distribution range. It co-occurs in few places with maxima and grows as well close to marginata. Although Bayer in his Haworthia Revisited mentioned, he hasn´t observed any hybrids with maxima, I have seen on farm Sandrift (South), where poellnitziana grows together with maxima some hybrids - see photos below. There are another populations of poellnitziana on the same farm more to the North and another to the West, where the normal form of poellnitziana grows close to the maraisii/heidelbergensis, maxima and mutica. On nearby hill occurs as well strange form of marginata - with longer, more narrow leaves.

In cultivation it is not yet common, just clone from ISI propagation, which is not the typical form of poellnitziana - it is with much shorter, broader leaves and it is offsetting freely as well. Propagation should be done by seed or in case of proliferous clone by offsets.

Known localities:
  • W. Drew (3320CC)
  • NW. Drew (3320CC)
  • Sandrift (3320CC)
  • Laast Water (3320CC)

H. minima var. poellnitziana/maxima, Sandrift West,  
NEW PHOTO
H. minima var. poellnitziana/maxima, Sandrift West, 
NEW PHOTO
H. minima var. poellnitziana/maxima, Sandrift West,  
NEW PHOTO

Locality of H. minima var. poellnitziana/maxima, Sandrift West, 
NEW PHOTO
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Laast Water
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Laast Water
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Laast Water
Locality of H. minima var. poellnitziana, Laast Water
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift South
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift South
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift South
H. minima var. poellnitziana X H. maxima, Sandrift South
H. minima var. poellnitziana X H. maxima, Sandrift South
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift South
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift North
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift North
H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift North
Locality of H. minima var. poellnitziana, Sandrift North

2 comments:

Anonymous said...

Does this have the typical white flower? I have one named but the flowers look more like a gasteria/haworthia cross with pink flowers.

Kuba said...

Re white flower - yes, it has typical flower like rest of minima. Main difference is size of the rosette/leaves. There is plant Poellnitzia rubriflora (now moved to Astroloba), which has orange type of flower...but that´s different type of plant.