Albuca SPIRALIS - Frizzle sizzle, Spiral albuca, Corkscrew albuca, Albuca spiralis.
A very unusual plant!
Albuca is a genus of monocotyledonous plants in the family Asparagaceae, 100-120 species of which are distributed predominantly in Southern Africa, where they bear the local name 'temaraka'; a small number of species occur in tropical Africa and on the Arabian Peninsula.
In many species, white flowers with a green stripe or margin closely resemble the flowers of star-of-Bethlehem (Ornithogalum), to which Albuca was long referred, placing it first in the lily family (Liliaceae), then in Hyacinthaceae. The number of species in the genus was estimated at various times from 30 to 100 species; according to recent data, there are more than 150.
Bulbous plants with succulent leaves from 8 cm to 1.2 m (3.1 in to 3.9 ft) long, flat or with keeled ridges. Curly leaves twisted into spirals present great ornamental value. The degree of leaf curling depends on heat, amount of light, and plant clone. The sap is sticky.
Flowering occurs during the spring period - a thick, fleshy, glaucous peduncle up to 60 cm (24 in) high appears, bearing a loose raceme including up to 10-20 nodding flowers 3 cm (1.2 in) in diameter, arranged on pedicels up to 4 cm (1.6 in) long, with small pointed bracts. The corolla is bell-shaped, with 6 petal-like lobes arranged in two whorls - three hovering, reflexed nearly horizontally, and three directed downward, sheltering 3 long stamens and the pistil. The flowers are self-pollinating.
Corolla coloration ranges from pale yellow to greenish, with a broad green stripe down the center of petals and yellow margins. The flowers possess a faint creamy-vanilla aroma, reminiscent of the scent of butter cookies. Interestingly, scents in albucas are complex, difficult to describe, and are characteristic only of those species that have flowers in yellow-green tones; species with white flowers are unscented.
After flowering, fruits form - small capsules with black shiny seeds.
Spiral albuca is a perennial bulbous plant growing in the South African province of Namaqualand, in the western part of the Cape Floristic Region, on loamy plateaus called the Karoo, as well as in Namibia in desert sandy valleys. During the hot period of African summer it is in dormancy, shedding foliage and keeping underground its round, flattened, whitish bulbs 5 cm (2 in) in diameter. With the arrival of cool but dry winter weather, fibrous white roots grow back; toward spring the plant revives, forming a basal rosette of 15-20 coiled leaves. They are linear, fleshy, gray-green, initially projecting in a spiral. In heat, they twist into curls reminiscent of coiled serpentines. This is a distinctive adaptation to reduce evaporation and preserve moisture in leaves. In height, the leaf rosette does not exceed 15 cm (6 in), but when uncoiled a leaf can reach up to 33 cm (13 in) in length.