''Acrotome inflata'' (horsefright or tumbleweed) is a species of flowering plant in the family

Lamiaceae The Lamiaceae ( ) or Labiatae are a family (biology), family of flowering plants commonly known as the mint, deadnettle, or sage family. Many of the plants are aromatic in all parts and include widely used culinary herbs like basil (herb), ba ...

. This species is native to Africa. ''Acrotome inflata'' was first described in 1848 by

George Bentham George Bentham (22 September 1800 – 10 September 1884) was an English botanist, described by the weed botanist Duane Isely as "the premier systematic botanist of the nineteenth century". Born into a distinguished family, he initially studie ...

. The name "horsefright" is derived from the

Afrikaans Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...

"perdeskrikbossie" (horse-fright bush).Smith, C.A.: ''Common Names of South African Plants'', page 601. Pretoria: Government Printer, 1966.

Characteristics

''Acrotome inflata'' is an erect annual herb that grows up to 1 metre tall. Its stems are densely covered in appressed hairs. The arrangement of its leaves are opposite and are either sessile or shorty petiolate. The leaves range from being ovate, to being oblong-lanceolate and usually grow from 3–12 cm long (but are mostly wider on the lower part of the stem). Its leaves very hairy on both sides and its margins are rarely crenate-dentate. Its flowers are grouped in dense rows in inflorescences that come in verticils, it has many bracteoles, are filiforms that grow up to 1 centimetre long, are densely-hairy and are spine-tipped.' Its corolla come in colors varying from white to pale mauve.

Habitat

''Acrotome inflata'' usually thrives in dry tropical biomes, usually depending on the season.

References

Taxa named by George Bentham Plants described in 1848 Flora of Angola Flora of Botswana Flora of the Cape Provinces Flora of the Free State Flora of Lesotho Flora of Namibia Flora of the Northern Provinces Flora of Zambia Flora of Zimbabwe Lamiaceae {{Lamiaceae-stub