Helichrysum pagophilum

Helichrysum pagophilum, commonly known as the crag everlasting, is a much-branched dwarf shrublet, a rare species. It grows a compact, dome-shaped cushion of dense grey leaf rosettes at the many stem tips. The old stems become bare, woody and prostrate. A mature plant may be up to 1 m in diameter while only about 10 cm high. Growing among upper Drakensberg rocks, the mounds or domes are often variously twisted as the rock surfaces allow.  

The species distribution is range-restricted, only growing in a small region in the west of the KwaZulu-Natal Drakensberg and the east of the Malutis of Lesotho, known in areas like Cathedral Peak and Garden Castle. This photo was taken in November in the Mkhomazi Wilderness Area.

The habitat is high elevation basaltic grassland, the plants growing on rock faces, often taking advantage of unlikely small crevices. Although rare, the habitat population is stable early in the twenty first century.

The specific name, pagophilum, is derived from the Greek words pagos meaning frost or ice and philos meaning loving or fond of, referring to the plant's high altitude Drakensberg adaptation where the winters are cold and plants become seasonally snow-covered (iNaturalist; iSpot; www.keys.lucidcentral.org; http://redlist.sanbi.org).