Macledium spinosum is a variable species of flowering plant in the family Asteraceae, that is endemic to the southern Cape regions of South Africa.

[1] A low, compact, spreading shrub, reaching a maximum of 50 cm in height.

The wide (20 mm) protea-like flowerheads appear in Spring and Summer, and range in colour from white to purple.

[2][3] A closely related species, Macledium relhanioides, occurs in similar areas in the western Little Karoo and Overberg, but tends to be confined to quartzitic outcrops and quartz-fields.

It is most common in clay-rich, shale-derived soils, in Renosterveld and Succulent Karoo vegetation types.