Description:

• Perennial, deciduous, bulbous herbs, occasionally forming clumps
• Bulb globose to ovoid; scales imbricate, fleshy
• Leaves 1-several, contemporary with flowers; with or without a pseudopetiole; narrowly ovate to cordate, thin or fleshy, acute; folded and clasping below; margin entire, rarely minutely crenate; often spotted; glabrous or pubescent
• Inflorescence 1-several, an axillary, cylindrical raceme(s) or spike(s); peduncle erect; bracts minute
• Flowers green, white, pink or purple, small, many; pedicels very short or absent
• Tepals free, cohering below, forming a tube; lobes erect, with small spreading or incurved, hooded apices, narrowly oblong; persistent
• Stamens 6, arising from base of tepals, included; anthers versatile, introrse
• Ovary sessile, oblong, with 2 basal ovules in each locule; style terete; stigma apical
• Fruit an obovoid capsule, deeply 3-angled, rounded above; dehiscing loculicidally
• Seeds semiglobose, flat on abaxial side, black, shiny, verrucose
• x = 10, 11 (aneuploids, high polyploidy)

Classification Notes:

• In this account, the concept of Drimiopsis includes that of the genus Resnova
• This differs from Müller-Doblies & Müller-Doblies (1997) where the genus Resnova is resuscitated and is separated from Drimiopsis by its ± spreading tepal lobes, biseriate stamens, subulate filaments and longer perianth
  • Several new species of Drimiopsis were also described in this publication, but before these can be incorporated type material/cited material needs to be accessible

Nomenclature:

• Drimiopsis Lindl. & Paxton
  • Lindley & Paxton: 73, t. 172 (1851)
  • Baker: 473 (1897)
  • Jessop: 151 (1972)
  • Stedje: 45 (1993)
  • Stedje: 6 (1996)
  • Hutchings et al.: 42 (1996)
  • Müller-Doblies & Müller-Doblies: 58 (1997)
• Resnova Van der Merwe
  • Van der Merwe: 41 (1946)

Distribution & Notes:

• Global: Species ± 15, Africa
• Southern Africa: Species 5, widespread in eastern region, Northern Province, North-West, Gauteng, Mpumalanga, Swaziland, KwaZulu-Natal, Eastern Cape
  • Drimiopsis, in its broad sense, occurs in grassland, forest margins, often in rocky, shady areas

Additional Notes:

• Used medicinally and horticulturally