| Protologue: |
Sansevieria 37: 12–15 (2018). |
| Subgenus: |
Capitulatus |
| Group: |
Sansevieria scimitariformis |
| Etymology: |
This species is named for Bhwire Bhitala, a Tanzanian lawyer and nurseryman who collected this species (Bhitala 1000). |
| Distribution: |
Tanzania, mainly west of the Rift Valley and south of the Serengeti Plains. The distribution of this species extends into Malawi and probably extends into northwestern Mozambique and northeastern Zambia. |
| Brief Description: |
Leaves are highly variable, and 1-3 adult leaves arise from rather large rhizomes. There is a juvenile form that can persist for up to a decade with leaves that tend to be prostrate to ascending, approximately 10 – 15 cm wide by 25 – 35 cm long. Adult leaves are stiff and ascending with a broad channel, are smooth on both sides, and are 40-90 cm long and 5-7 cm wide. Leaf color ranges from gray green to a highly mottled leaf with gray-green blotches on a darker green background to solid dark green. The inflorescence is capitate with dense flowers that have purplish tubes and white tepals. The flowering peduncle typically arises directly from the rhizome but also can occur between the leaves. The inflorescence typically is 45 cm tall and capitate. |
| Similar Species: |
For many decades, a form of Sansevieria bhitalae known as Sansevieria kirkii ‘Superclone’ has been in cultivation, distributed by Grigsby Cactus Nursery in Vista, California. Sansevieria bhitalae has thicker, stiffer leaves than S. kirkii, which is a species of coastal Tanzania and Mozambique and has flexible, mottled leaves. S. bhitalae likely is the most widespread Sansevieria in Tanzania and has affinities to more southerly species in Malawi and Zimbabwe, notably S. scimitariformis. |
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Sansevieria bhitalae in habitat near Niiapanda, Tanzania.
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Sansevieria bhitalae in habitat near Tunduru, Tanzania, near the Mozambique border.
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Juvenile forms of Sansevieria bhitalae in cultivation in Arusha, Tanzania.
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Sansevieria bhitalae (Bhitala 1000) flowering in cultivation.
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Sansevieria bhitalae ‘Superclone’ flowering in cultivation.
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