Species Oxalis comptonii
Pictures from Observations
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From the Greek oxys = sharp, sour or acid and (h)als = salt. The plant is frequently consumed for its sour taste caused by the oxalic acid, particularly the flowering stalks of O. pes-caprae. In large quantities the oxalic acid inhibits digestion and in stock leads to the condition 'dikpens' or bloated belly.
Honoring Prof. Robert Harold Compton (1886-1979). Cambridge educated botanist and the second director of Kirstenbosch Botanic Gardens, he made more than 35 000 collections. In 1914 he parrticipated in a field expedition to New Caledonia and found both new genera and new species. This collecting register is in the British Museum. After war service from 1915-1918 he became a professor of botany at the University of Cape Town. He founded and edited the Journal of South African Botany. Upon his retirement he settled in Swaziland and undertook a survey of the territory.