| Mackaya bella | |
|---|---|
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| Mackaya bella flowers are bilaterally symmetric | |
| Scientific classification  | |
| Kingdom: | Plantae | 
| Clade: | Tracheophytes | 
| Clade: | Angiosperms | 
| Clade: | Eudicots | 
| Clade: | Asterids | 
| Order: | Lamiales | 
| Family: | Acanthaceae | 
| Genus: | Mackaya | 
| Species: | M. bella  | 
| Binomial name | |
| Mackaya bella | |
| Synonyms[2] | |
| 
 Asystasia bella (Harv.) Vesque  | |
Mackaya bella, called the forest bell bush, is a species of flowering plant in the acanthus family Acanthaceae, native to South Africa (Cape Provinces, KwaZulu-Natal, and Northern Provinces) and Eswatini.[2]
Growing to 1.5 m (4.9 ft) tall and broad, it is an evergreen shrub with glossy green leaves, and trumpet-shaped pale lilac flowers veined in purple. The plant is not hardy below 10 °C (50 °F), so in temperate zones requires protection during the winter months. However, it may be placed outside in a sheltered spot in summer. It requires an alkaline or neutral soil.[3]
It has gained the Royal Horticultural Society's Award of Garden Merit.[3]
References
- ↑ Thes. Cap. 1: 8 (1859)
 - 1 2 "Mackaya bella Harv". Plants of the World Online. Board of Trustees of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew. 2017. Retrieved 27 September 2023.
 - 1 2 "Mackaya bella forest bell bush". The Royal Horticultural Society. Retrieved 10 November 2020.
 
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