at the monthly meeting of the SFSCS – Tuesday, January 19, 2021 – 7:00 pm PDT

Presentation content © 2021 Robert H. Webb.

Special thanks to Dr. Webb for allowing us to make it available here.

The genus Sansevieria has deep roots in botanical history, with the first species described by Linnaeus and lumped in with Aloes! Currently, there are about 80 species, subspecies, and varieties recognized. Bob Webb and his collaborators with the International Sansevieria Society are describing new species of Sansevieria from both collections and from field work in Africa. This talk focuses on many of the new species and the initial stages of revising this interesting and long-neglected genus.

Dr. Robert H. Webb is a retired hydrologist from the U.S. Geological Survey. He has been growing succulent plants and cacti for nearly 40 years, conducted research on plant ecology and conservation biology in the southwestern United States for nearly as long, and for the last 15 years has travelled extensively in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula looking for succulent plants. He and his wife are the owners of Arid Lands Greenhouses in Tucson, Arizona. Webb is the chairman of the International Sansevieria Society. He has described and named 10 species or subspecies of plants, including 2 Agave species from Baja California, Mexico, and 8 Sansevieria species or subspecies from East Africa.