aardroos, noun

Plurals:
aardrose /ˈɑː(r)trʊəsə/.
Origin:
South African DutchShow more South African Dutch, aard earth + roos rose.
1. Any of several plant parasites, especially Cytinus sanguineus of the Rafflesiaceae and Hyobanche sanguinea of the Scrophulariaceae, with vividly-coloured red flowers projecting just above the ground near the host plant. See also earth-rose, skilpadblom (skilpad sense b).
1795, 1809 [see earth-rose].
1913 C. Pettman Africanderisms 19Aardroos,..Thunberg applies this name to Phelipaea sanguinea, but it is now applied — and much more appropriately as far as colour is concerned — to the thick-stemmed, rosy-red, root parasite, Hyobanche sanguinea.
1970 M.R. Levyns in Std Encycl. of Sn Afr. I. 2Aardroos, (Cytinus sanguineus.) A parasite, of the family Cytinaceae, which lives on the roots of a number of different plants which act as hosts. It has no green leaves, and its..flowers are orange or scarlet. They appear close to the host.
2. Any of several species of dwarf protea, especially P. acaulos.
1965 S. Eliovson S. Afr. Wild Flowers for Garden 265P[rotea] minor. Aardroos...This species was only discovered about 10 years ago in the Bredasdorp and Caledon divisions of the south-western Cape.
1966 C.A. Smith Common Names 56P[rotea] minor..P. acaulos and P. aspera are the original aardroos of the district and the name is said to date from about the middle of the 18th century.
1984 Bond & Goldblatt Plants of Cape Flora 372Protea..acaulos (L.) Reichard — (aardroos); shrub with trailing branches from underground rootstock, flowers yellow to pink.
Any of several plant parasites, especially Cytinus sanguineus of the Rafflesiaceae and Hyobanche sanguinea of the Scrophulariaceae, with vividly-coloured red flowers projecting just above the ground near the host plant.
Any of several species of dwarf protea, especially P. acaulos.
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19131984