[5] This species was first described by John Stanley Beard in 1958,[2] from a specimen, the holotype, which he had collected on Mount Nyangani, Zimbabwe.

It is primarily distinguished from these taxa by having shorter inflorescences and a short, squat, bushy habitus.

[5] The seed is not stored on the plant,[5] is released nine to twelve months after the flowers are formed,[7] and is dispersed by action of the wind.

It has declined somewhat in the Drakensberg foothills due to habitat loss caused by agriculture, timber plantations and expanding rural settlements.

Nonetheless, it is widespread and common in the Drakensberg Mountains of KwaZulu-Natal and adjacent areas in the Free State Province.