''Exomis'' is a genus of

flowering plant Flowering plants are plants that bear flowers and fruits, and form the clade Angiospermae (), commonly called angiosperms. They include all forbs (flowering plants without a woody stem), grasses and grass-like plants, a vast majority of ...

s belonging to the family

Amaranthaceae Amaranthaceae is a family of flowering plants commonly known as the amaranth family, in reference to its type genus '' Amaranthus''. It includes the former goosefoot family Chenopodiaceae and contains about 165 genera and 2,040 species, making i ...

. It just contains one species, ''Exomis microphylla'' (Thunb.) Aellen It is also in the Chenopodioideae subfamily.

Description

They are shrubs with dichotomous branching (forking into two equal branches),

monoecious Monoecy (; adj. monoecious ) is a sexual system in seed plants where separate male and female cones or flowers are present on the same plant. It is a monomorphic sexual system alongside gynomonoecy, andromonoecy and trimonoecy. Monoecy i ...

with few bisexual flowers (with male and female reproductive structures in separate flowers but on the same plant). The

staminate flower The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filame ...

s (male flowers) are in clusters, these forming terminal spikes with a 5-lobed perianth. It has 5

stamens The stamen (plural ''stamina'' or ''stamens'') is the pollen-producing reproductive organ of a flower. Collectively the stamens form the androecium., p. 10 Morphology and terminology A stamen typically consists of a stalk called the filam ...

, with the filaments basally fused. The pistillate flowers (female flowers) are irregularly dispersed between the staminate ones. They are surrounded by 2 cylindrical bracteoles (small modified leaves) accrescent (increasing in size) when in fruit. The fruit (or seed capsule), is beaked at the top with the pericarp (wall of the fruit) fleshy and adherent (linked). The seeds are vertical with the embryo annular (circle or ring shaped). With the radicle (root) pointing downward.

Ecology

The larva of

Brephidium metophis ''Brephidium metophis'', the tinktinkie blue, is a butterfly of the family Lycaenidae. It is found in southern Africa, including South Africa, Botswana, Mozambique and Zimbabwe. In South Africa, it is found from the Western Cape, north to Namaqua ...

, (the tinktinkie blue), a butterfly feed on the plant. The bush Karoo rat ('' Otomys unisulcatus''), builds its nests, dome-shaped stick shelters or lodges, using the plant stems of ''Exomis''.

Taxonomy

Khoi Khoekhoen (singular Khoekhoe) (or Khoikhoi in the former orthography; formerly also '' Hottentots''"Hottentot, n. and adj." ''OED Online'', Oxford University Press, March 2018, www.oed.com/view/Entry/88829. Accessed 13 May 2018. Citing G. S. ...

is known as 'Hondebos'. The genus name of ''Exomis'' is derived from Greek word ''exomis'' or ''exomidos'' meaning a 'a man's vest without sleeves'.Umberto Quattrocchi The Latin

specific epithet In taxonomy, binomial nomenclature ("two-term naming system"), also called nomenclature ("two-name naming system") or binary nomenclature, is a formal system of naming species of living things by giving each a name composed of two parts, bot ...

of ''microphylla'' means small leaved. It was first published in Chenop. Monogr. Enum. on page 49 in 1840. The species of ''Exomis microphylla'' was published in Bot. Jahrb. Syst. Vol.70 on page 375 in 1939. There is a known

variant Variant may refer to: In arts and entertainment * ''Variant'' (magazine), a former British cultural magazine * Variant cover, an issue of comic books with varying cover art * ''Variant'' (novel), a novel by Robison Wells * " The Variant", 2021 e ...

''Exomis microphylla'' var. ''microphylla'' (with its own synonym of ''Atriplex microphylla'' ). The genus is recognized by the

United States Department of Agriculture The United States Department of Agriculture (USDA) is the federal executive department responsible for developing and executing federal laws related to farming, forestry, rural economic development, and food. It aims to meet the needs of com ...

and the

Agricultural Research Service The Agricultural Research Service (ARS) is the principal in-house research agency of the United States Department of Agriculture (USDA). ARS is one of four agencies in USDA's Research, Education and Economics mission area. ARS is charged with ex ...

and they do list all known species and all known variants.

Distribution

It is native to South Africa, it is found in the

provinces A province is almost always an administrative division within a country or state. The term derives from the ancient Roman ''provincia'', which was the major territorial and administrative unit of the Roman Empire's territorial possessions outsi ...

of the

Cape Provinces The Cape Provinces of South Africa is a biogeographical area used in the World Geographical Scheme for Recording Plant Distributions (WGSRPD). It is part of the WGSRPD region 27 Southern Africa. The area has the code "CPP". It includes the Sou ...

and Free State and also in Namibia. arid areas The shrub can be found growing on low-lying sandy areas with other plants such as; ''Zygophyllum cordiflorum'', ''Z. flexuosum'', ''Z. morgsana'', ''Atriplex semibaccata'', ''Ruschia geminiflora'', ''

Ehrharta calycina ''Ehrharta calycina'' is a species of grass known by the common names perennial veldtgrass and purple veldtgrass. Distribution It is native to southern Africa; from South Africa (within the Cape Provinces, Free State and KwaZulu-Natal), Lesotho ...

'', ''Muraltia dumosa'', ''

Searsia glauca ''Searsia glauca'' (or the blue kuni-rhus) is a small, compact tree or bush that is commonly found along the coastline of southern Africa. Although commonest near the coast, it is also found inland among fynbos vegetation. Description The lea ...

'', ''Limonium perigrinum'', ''Restio oleocharis'' and ''

Euclea racemosa ''Euclea racemosa'' (the sea guarrie or dune guarrie) is a small to medium-sized evergreen tree that is indigenous to the Indian Ocean coast of Africa from Egypt to South Africa, as well as in Comoros, Oman and Yemen. ''Euclea racemosa'' has l ...

''.

Uses

''Exomis microphylla'' is known as 'unvenyathi' and used as a folk medicine in

Alice, South Africa Alice is a small town in Eastern Cape, South Africa that is named after Princess Alice of the United Kingdom, Princess Alice, the daughter of the British Queen Victoria. It was settled in 1824 by British colonists it's adjacent to the Tyhume R ...

, a leaf

decoction Decoction is a method of extraction by boiling herbal or plant material (which may include stems, roots, bark and rhizomes) to dissolve the chemicals of the material. It is the most common preparation method in various herbal-medicine systems. De ...

is used in a remedy for

endometritis Endometritis is inflammation of the inner lining of the uterus (endometrium). Symptoms may include fever, lower abdominal pain, and abnormal vaginal bleeding or discharge. It is the most common cause of infection after childbirth. It is also ...

and

vaginitis Vaginitis, also known as vulvovaginitis, is inflammation of the vagina and vulva. Symptoms may include itching, burning, pain, discharge, and a bad smell. Certain types of vaginitis may result in complications during pregnancy. The three main ...

.Cheryl Moses The Cape Khoi people used the leaf decoctions with milk to remedy for

epilepsy Epilepsy is a group of non-communicable neurological disorders characterized by recurrent epileptic seizures. Epileptic seizures can vary from brief and nearly undetectable periods to long periods of vigorous shaking due to abnormal electrical ...

, winds, cramps and also convulsions in infants.

References

{{Taxonbar, from1=Q11681744, from2=Q17582044, from3=Q15589139 Chenopodioideae Plants described in 1840 Flora of Namibia Flora of the Cape Provinces Flora of the Free State