Wild Basil
Ocimum sp.
Heavily grazed rocky slope near Voi, Eldoret, Kenya. 28 May 2017. Mr. Khalid helped be discover the genus name of this plant.
LEAVES: The opposite leaves are elliptic and have mostly smooth, entire margins. Leaves are aromatic.
HERBACEOUS: Primarily herbaceous with perhaps a bit of woody base.
Plants were mostly less than ½ meter tall.
FLOWERS: The flowers are arranged in rings of six about an upright spike. Each
flower has an enlarged calyx with the upper portion forming a fan-like cap.
RANGE: One of many, confusing species of Ocimum recorded in Kenya.
Their abundance is related to the fact that grazing cattle and goats avoid them.
FRUIT:
UNARMED.
