| Protologue: |
Bradleya 28: 24 (2010). |
| Subgenus: |
Paniculatus |
| Group: |
Sansevieria powellii |
| Etymology: |
Named for the late Gilfrid Powys, a Kenyan of Welsh ancestry who was a farmer and succulent plant enthusiast in central Kenya and who found this species. |
| Distribution: |
Occurs in northeastern coastal Kenya (Kiwaiyu Island) with possible extension into southern coastal Somalia. |
| Brief Description: |
This is a caulescent, slow-growing species with up to 29 rigid gray-green leaves that grows to a maximum height of about 2 m. The roughly triangular gray-green leaves spiral and spread, recurving downwards, and are 30-69 cm long by less than 2.5 cm wide and a 1.2 cm thick. The leaves have a prominent gutter on the upper surface and narrow to a sharp spine-like tip. The leaf surface is slightly rough and has a thin red-brown fraying margin. The inflorescence is 85 cm tall and paniculate with 4 - 6 flowers per cluster. |
| Similar Species: |
Similar to a number of species from coastal Somalia and Kenya including Sansevieria arborescens, S. ascendens, and S. powellii. Sansevieria powysii is slower growing than any of these species and has a lower height. The tight, spiralling growth pattern of the leaves is also distinctive and reminiscent of the acaulescent Sansevieria pinguicula with longer leaves. |
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Sansevieria powysii in cultivation.
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Sansevieria powysii flowering in cultivation (photograph by L.E. Newton).
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