Xhosa dream

Name: Sileneundulata Aiton Family: Caryophyllaceae (pink family or carnation family) Common names: English - dream root, gunpowder plant, large-flowered campion Afrikaans - wildetabak Xhosa - ubulawu, undlela zimhlophe, unozitholana

Xhosa dream root! Description

Aslender sticky herb up to 60cm high, with glandular-hairy leaves that occur mostly along the base and are about 10cm long and 20mm wide. Flowers are white to pink about 20 mm in diameter and have fused bracts at the base that are 25-35mm long. Leaves are opposite, tongue-shaped, in a basal rosette. Seeds are almost black and kidneyshaped with flattened sides. Silene undulata flower in spring and summer.

Conservation status

According to the SANBI (South African National Biodiversity Institute) Red list of South African Plants, silene undulata has been given an automated status of Least Concern (LC); meaning that it hasn’t been selected for any of the four screening processes to highlight its potential threat status; it is therefore not a species of conservation concern currently, until a full assessment has been conducted. http:// redlist.sanbi.org

Distribution and habitat

Silene undulata is found sporadically in moist, loamy or clay soils in grassy damp slopes and along watercourses in lowland habitat types. This is a widespread species from Cape Peninsula to tropical Africa.

Derivation of name and historical aspects

Silene comes from the Greek word sialon, meaning saliva, referring to the sticky stems. Ubulawu derives from the verb ukulawula meaning (in every day use) to give instructions, but in this sense ukulawula means “to tell of your dreams in which you have received instructions from the ancestors”. The word is believed to have come from the Khoekhoen word laula, meaning to apologise.

Ecology

Silene flowers are frequently visited by flies, such Rhingia campestris.

Uses and cultural aspects

For amaXhosa, dreams are considered to be a means of Learn about our natural heritage and the links between cultural and biological diversity direct communication between the living and the ancestors and dreams are closely integrated into traditional healing practices. Good dreams are considered to be those directly connected with the ancestors, while bad dreams are sent by someone who wishes to harm the dreamer.

Undlela zimhlophe (white ways or white paths) is used in various ways to facilitate communication with the ancestors ( izinyanya) during religious rituals.

Ritual purity is essential for communication with the ancestors and can be achieved by washing with ubulawu plants. The root of this plant is an “oneirogen”, that is a dream inducer.

The foam-producing roots are crushed or grated, added to a billy can of cold water and whisked rapidly using a fork stick known as ixhayi until a head of frothy white foam is produced.

This form, called isilawu, is used as face and body wash and/or ingested.

The delicate white flowers to pinkish unozitholana flowers are nocturnal, opening at dusk and closing in the early morning.

Following instructions received from the ancestors in a dream, the diviner collects the roots at dawn when the plants are most clearly visible.

It is said that the diviner receives a clear image of the locality of the plant in a dream and always finds the plant exactly as it was seen in the dream.

Once the site indicated in the dream is found, the diviner acknowledges the ancestors for the gift with phrase “camagu” (be appeased). The roots are dug from the ground and placed in a collecting bag to be carried home. In return for the gift received from the ancestors, the diviner places a few white beads in the hole, again with a chorus “camagu”, in acknowledgement, and covers them.

Growing silene undulata

According to Lorraine Solomon, owner of Kumbula Nursery in Bathurst, silene undulata produces seed very freely and can easily become invasive if not checked.

The small grey seeds, which apparently look like gunpowder, are held in an urn-like capsule which opens at the top when ripe and are dispersed when the flower stems blow in the wind.

It is said that silene undulata is apparently tolerant of extreme heat (+40°C) and extreme cold and even snow, when grown in the US.

The seeds are easily grown, but only on well-drained soil. They should be sown in autumn or spring in a seed box or open ground and kept slightly moist.

When the young plants are about 5cm tall, they can be planted into position or thinned out. Compost should be added if the soil is very sandy.

Silene undulata appears messy in a garden bed or formal situation but is a delightful sight on dull days and evenings when the flowers open.

They are very fragrant, particularly in the evening. Growth habit is lax and the many dead flower stems need to be cut away at the end of the flowering season. (Ref: http://kumbulanursery.co.za/ plants/ silene- capensis- sileneundulata.)

• Someleze Mgcuwa is a plant digitiser for the Karoo Bio gaps project, based in the Schonland Herbarium.