Tecophilaeaceae - Botanical Family

Botanical name: Cyanastrum cordifolium

Common name: Cyanastrum

Family: Tecophilaeaceae

Origin: Tropical Africa

Cyanastrum cordifolium is a cormous plant grown as an herbaceous, perennial houseplant with hosta-like foliage in shady to partial shady conditions.

Botanical names: Kabuyea hostifolia, Cyanastrum hostifolium

Common name: African Lily of the Valley

Family: Tecophilaeaceae

Origin: Tanzania and Mozambique

USDA Plant Hardiness Zone Map

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Kabuyea is a plant genus in the family Tecophilaeaceae, first described as a genus in 1998. It has one known species, Kabuyea hostifolia (syn. Cyanastrum hostifolium), native from Tanzania to Mozambique in low elevation areas. The flowers have a clean, sweet fragrance.

Kabuyea hostifolia has a corm that lacks a protective tunic. The stacks of perennial corms persist, much like Ferraria. Note that each plant typically has one stack of corm and does not branch. The leaves are all basal and usually number four, both the leaves and the inflorescence emerging from the same corm-scale, and being present simultaneously. The inflorescence is a raceme, each floret having white tepals and parts in sixes.

The mother plant at Top Tropicals collection was given to us by John Banta, he obtained it from his expedition to African forests. We treasure this extremely rare specimen and try to propagate as many as possible since the the demand for this unique plant is very high among plant collectors.