Rhipsalis flagelliformis, sp. nov., is described from Rio de Janeiro state, where it is narrowly endemic. It superficially resembles the Mexican Disocactus flagelliformis and cannot be confused with any other Rhipsalis species. In habit the plant appears to be highly neotenic, retaining the seedling characters typical of some members of its genus. According to gene sequence data it belongs in Rhipsalis subg. Goniorhipsalis and shares some features with the related R. lindbergiana, R. pacheco-leonis and R. pentaptera, but differs from these in its conspicuously spiny stems. Its IUCN Red List conservation status is determined as Critically Endangered.

Species of Agave L., the New World genus of rosulate leaf succulents, generally take many years to flower. Consequently, new species were historically often described from sterile material, resulting in a situation where fundamental phenological information on many species is often lacking. Although less prevalent today, this situation continues sporadically and for Agave felgeri Gentry, which was described just over 40 years ago, information such as basic flower morphology and flower colour is lacking. Here we rectify this situation by providing an amplified description and illustrations of the species.

Chlorophytum cremnophilum (Anthericaceae) is a cremnophilous species only known from the Grootrivierspoort and the Kougarivier in the Eastern Cape is named. This new species is at once recognised by its drooping stems of up to a meter and more in length, usually sparingly dichotomously branched, with the apical rosettes turning upwards.

The typification of two names in Agave L. (Agavaceae / Asparagaceae), Agave ×peacockii Croucher and A. warelliana Hort. ex Baker, is clarified. Illustrations of the newly designated lectotypes of both these names are included.

Aloe liliputana is a new species endemic to coastal Pondoland, north of Port Saint Johns, in the Eastern Cape Province, South Africa, is described. It belongs to section Graminialoe Reynolds, a group of small grass aloes with which it shares a grassland and often Afromontane habitat (Reynolds 1950). The new species is related to Aloe parviflora Bak. from which it is distinguished by its thin wiry spreading subterete leaves 2mm in diameter, not broadening towards the apex and lacking the dense basal raised tubercles, as well as its floral bracts which are as long or a little longer than the pedicel length, and its perianth of 8–11mm long. This represents one of the smallest aloes of the world and, in fact, of all southern African aloes this species has the narrowest leaves.

Espostoa cremnophila is described as a new species of cactus from Peru. It grows exclusively on vertical cliff faces in a side valley of the Río Marañón in the northern part of the Department of La Libertad, Peru. It is likely that the most closely related taxa are Espostoa calva F. Ritter and Espostoa utcubambensis G.J.Charles with which it is compared.

In 2003 a rubber canoe expedition was undertaken to investigate the vegetation and flora along the Mzimvubu River (also known as the Umzimvubu River) just south of the national road and the coast. Gasterias growing on the north and south-facing cliffs near the confluence with the Mzintlava River, as well as a few other sites along this river and the Msikaba River (2012) to the north, were collected and proved to be difficult to relate to any of the species known at the time. Plants were grown on at Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden and could be studied in more detail revealing their identity. This led to the confirmation of a new cremnophilous species of Gasteria endemic to the Mzimvubu and Msikaba Rivers in the Eastern Cape, here described as Gasteria loedolffiae.

Based on extensive morphological studies in more than 1,000 populations, two new subgenera are established in the genus Drosanthemum: D. subg. Decidua H.E.K.Hartmann and subg. Quadrata H.E.K.Hartmann; in the latter, a new species is described: D. tetramerum H.E.K. Hartmann. A key and descriptions of the included species are provided.

We show that seven of nine previously overlooked names recently recorded as validly published in Agave L. (Agavaceae / Asparagaceae) only add to the already substantial nomenclatural burden of the genus. In one case, that of A. leopoldii [as “Leopoldea”] Rafarin, which was published in 1874 in the Revue Horticole in an article entitled ‘Souvenirs de l'Exposition Internationale d'Horticulture de Gand', could have an impact on the species-level nomenclatural stability of the genus, if a proposal to conserve the name is not accepted. For the sake of nomenclatural stability, a formal mechanism must be found to lessen or, ideally, entirely prevent, long-forgotten names that were never used from being introduced in preference to ones in long use.

Aloe barbertoniae Pole-Evans, which has previously been included in the synonymy of A. greatheadii Schönland var. davyana (Schönland) Glen & D.S.Hardy, is here reinstated. This species is adapted to the subtropics of northeastern South Africa where it occurs in the Mpumalanga and Limpopo Provinces. It can be distinguished from A. greatheadii var. davyana by generally being a more robust plant with longer leaves and larger flowers, as well as an inflorescence that has more branches and that often rebranch. Although both the floral bracts and pedicels are shorter than in A. greatheadii var. davyana, the lowermost floral bracts of A. barbertoniae are markedly longer than the pedicels (not of equal length). The dull stripes on the perianth segments are less conspicuous than in A. greatheadii var. davyana.

Drimia intricata var. visagieae Van Jaarsv. from sheer rock faces of the Serra Chella escarpment west of Lubango in south western Angola is described. At once distinguished by its pendent semi-terete succulent minutely tuberculate leaves, firm yellowish green bulbs and large pendent white flowers.

The island of Madagascar harbours 128 species (161 taxa) of Aloe L., which are all endemic to this biodiversity hotspot. Most Malagasy aloes have very restricted distribution ranges and are represented by small populations. Madagascan aloes are very popular in horticulture and an important part of the ornamental plant export industry. The aloes of Madagascar are prone to human pressures that affect the degradation of their natural habitats and their survival. However, there has not been a treatment to assess the conservation status of the Malagasy aloes. Here, for the first time, we aim to provide a risk assessment and make available preliminary conservation statuses for all the known aloes of Madagascar. Specimen information from different herbaria and different websites have been gathered and compiled into a BRAHMS database. The Conservation Assessment Tool was used for data analysis during the conservation assessments. It was found that around 39% of Madagascan aloes are threatened, with only 4% being Least Concern. Of great significance is the fact that almost 50% of the aloes in Madagascar are regarded as Data Deficient, likely leading to a huge underestimate of the percentage of threatened aloes. Further research into Data Deficient taxa and a comprehensive conservation assessment for all the aloes of Madagascar is required. These results will inform priorities in conservation projects concerning aloes and the areas where they occur.

Tephrocactus verschaffeltii, until recently better known as Austrocylindropuntia verschaffeltii, has hitherto only been known from Argentina and Bolivia. A single population discovered growing at 3660m in the department of Moquegua, Peru is approximately 400km distant from the next known population in the department of La Paz in Bolivia. This new population confirms Tephrocactus verschaffeltii as a member of the Peruvian flora and Tephrocactus as a new generic record for Peru.

The dwarf Melocactus sergipensis, sp. nov., is described from a single lowland locality in the NE Brazilian state of Sergipe. It is compared with members of the M. VIOLACEUS species group, from which it may have been isolated on calcareous rocks within a former dense, high caatinga forest. Its longer term survival in the wild is in serious doubt, since the surrounding habitat has been converted for agriculture, and thus it is accorded the IUCN Red List status of Critically Endangered.

Anacampseros quinarioides Dreher, Rodgerson & Young - a new species of the section Avonia is described from the Kamiesberg region of South Africa. The combination of Avonia grisea in Anacampseros is published here.

Aloe andersonii, a new species endemic to Mount Anderson (Map 1), near Lydenburg in the Mpumalanga Province, South Africa, is described (Figures 1–6). It belongs to section Leptoaloe A.Berger, a group of small grass aloes with which it shares an Afromontane habitat (Reynolds 1950). The new species is related to Aloe challisii Van Jaarsv. from which it is distinguished by its short stems of 50–100mm length, firm green leaves which are not subterete, much larger sterile and flowering bracts as well as its cylindric perianth of 30mm in length (Table 2>). The new species was first brought to the attention of the author by Mr Philip Nel.

The stapeliad genera Piaranthus R.Br. and Huerniopsis N.E.Br. occur in semi-arid regions from the Eastern Cape Province of South Africa to southern Namibia. They have been the subject of several taxonomic reviews since the initial discovery of members of the former genus by Francis Masson in the Western Cape Province in the late 18th Century.

A broad overview of the history, publication, author, introduction, rediscovery, distribution, habitats, typification, and relationships of Agave ellemeetiana K.Koch is given. The species was first published by K.Koch in 1865 from cultivated plants of unknown origin and was rediscovered in habitat only in the last couple of years in Central Veracruz (Sierra de Zongolica), northern Oaxaca (Sierra Mazateca and near San Bartolomé Ayautla), and in western Oaxaca (Putla/Tlaxiaco region). Plants from western Oaxaca differ consistently in their finely denticulate leaf margins and are distinguished as Agave ellemeetiana subsp. subdentata (Trelease) Thiede comb. nov. from the plants in Veracruz and northern Oaxaca with entire, smooth leaf margins (= Agave ellemeetiana subsp. ellemeetiana).

The paper provides a typification of the name Gymnocalycium valnicekianum var. bicolor. Typification of this name was necessary most of all because the name had not been correctly typified and the holotype has not been found in the BA herbarium. A picture from Till & Amerhauser (2002) is selected as a lectotype. Due to circumstances of ambiguity around the selection of a holotype, an epitype from the locality of Cruz del Eje is designated here. The paper includes a more precise description of G. valnicekianum var. bicolor based on an analysis of three natural populations, and a new combination of the epithet bicolor at the rank of subspecies of G. mostii is published. Historical facts and assumptions about this taxon are discussed.

The genus Manfreda Salisb. (Asparagaceae) consists of 26–32 species distributed across North and Central America. Manfreda has been subject to a number of alternative taxonomic classifications based on morphology with alternative generic and subgeneric system employed for the taxon. The CBOL Plant DNA barcode (MatK and rbcL) was assessed for the ability to discriminate existing taxa allocated to the genus and construct meaningful phylogenies. Neither Bayesian nor Maximum Parsimony methods of phylogenetic inference were able to find adequate support for any divergence between the 19 specimens of Manfreda studied. It is therefore surmised that CBOL Plant DNA Barcodes have limited utility in the genus Manfreda for species identification or phylogenetic inference.