Seed collected in the Kimboza Forest, Morogoro District, in the Uluguru Mountains of Tanzania in 1971 was sent by Dr T. Pocs to Edinburgh where it was expected to be S. kimbozanus which was known from there. However, upon cultivation it was discovered not to be S. kimbozanus but a different species and was then described as S. thysanotus, by Hilliard and Burtt in 1975.
The species is upright and shrubby, growing to a height of 75 cm with a thick fleshy stem. It has a very characteristic flower shape, referred to as ‘labellanthus ‘ (see Morphology II in the Streptocarpus article) which has a lower lobe that juts forward, and a somewhat fused upper lip pair. The corolla tube is curved, 7.5 mm long and 4.5 mm in diameter and pale violet. The lower corolla lobes are 8 x 12 mm but the upper corolla lobes only 6 x 3 mm.
Additional photos can be seen in a slideshow by clicking one of the links below:
