Conophytum ratum is one of the more vulnerable species in the wild. There seem to have been 4 populations known for the typical large form of the species: Onder Namies (type locality), south of Achab se berg, Achab farm and the north-west foot of the Gamsberg. There do not seem to have been many plants at any of these localities, but the type locality was largely robbed out by a collector and the NW Gamsberg population has been destroyed by zinc mining. The plants at these localities grow (grew?) in flat quartz areas with just the top window exposed; they are often with C. maughanii which can look very similar in the wild situation. Wild plants are usually solitary and large, up to 40 - 50mm across. The Gamsberg itself is a flat-topped inselberg with a big crater on the west side. To the north-east there is a plateau region with some endemic species. In this area there is a substantial population of C. ratum which is much smaller than the type, only growing to 10-15mm diameter (even in cultivation). Furthermore it tends to flower in cultivation in mid-August, some 3-4 weeks earlier than the typical form. In my opinion, it constitutes a good subspecies and I wish that I had named it in the early 2000s after I had been shown it. It might have then received some protection from the mining operation. The mine is starting in the crater area but is now scheduled to move to the eastern part and this ecotype is unlikely to survive. The mining company has dug up the large common plants and is preserving them in a nursery for future landscaping when mining has finished, but no attention has been paid to the rare miniatures.
反正我是不相信什么原产地，除非自己去挖的