With its central pointed cone of dense black hair, Protea longifolia is one of the easier members of the genus Protea to recognise. The scientific name refers to the long narrow leaves, which are a better diagnostic character as there are other species with black hairy central cones. The leaves…
Snowdrops in Europe are renowned for appearing in depths of winter. The drooping white flowers push their way through the snow. Cape Snowdrops, Crassula capensis, reminded the early European settlers of these popular flowers, though the snow was inevitably lacking. Cape Snowdrops appear mostly from May to July (at least…
Erica banksii is one of the iconic ericas of the mountains of the south-western Overberg, including the Klein River Mountains. It is an unmistakable species. The flowers occur in bunches of 3 at the end of short branches. The corolla is a straight white tube. The white filaments of the…
Bright yellow Autumn Stars, Empodium plicatum, are common around the self-catering chalets and elsewhere on the reserve. They appear down at ground level, usually before the leaves emerge, at the end of April. The six petals are finely pointed, radiating from the centre like the arms of a star. In…
The toothbrush fern, Schizaea pectinata, is one of the most unusual ferns in South Africa if not the world. Indeed, it looks more like an odd sedge or strange grass than a fern. Most people recognise a fern by the many-divided segments that spread into a broad frond. But in…
The fynbos is remarkable not just for its diversity but for the number of rare plants. Many plants in fynbos are restricted to small areas. One of these is Cyrtanthus leucanthus, a member of the amaryllis family, Amaryllidaceae. It is only found in fynbos near the coast between Betty’s Bay…
