Wildflower series ~ Syncolostemon pretoriae

These pretty little plants belong to the same family as Sage and Plectranthus, the relationship is clear when looking at the flowers. As small and delicate as they are, these are really tough plants, there were large quantities of them growing high on the West-facing side of a nearby hill, where the ground is extremely hot, dry and stony and they are practically the only flowers growing on that slope. They also have a woody underground rootstock that enables them to grow again after they are burned by fire.

Syncolostemon are also grown in gardens and with easier growing conditions, they get a little bigger than the plants in my picture. The flowers are pretty close-up although it was impossible to do macro shots of them because the wind was blowing quite strongly on the hill when I was photographing these.