Of the eight species of sundew, Drosera, at Phillipskop, Drosera cistiflora has the largest and most beautiful flowers. The flowers are in shades of white to pinkish white and 5 to 6cm across. At the base of each petal is a very dark iridescent spot. This spot attracts the primary…
Common names are often descriptive but few are as ironic in their description as that of Climber’s Friend, Cliffortia ruscifolia. Climber’s Friend is a member of the Rose Family, Rosaceae, and the most recognized member of the large Cape genus, Cliffortia. The species is well-known for growing amongst rocks and…
On a still night at Phillipskop during spring, the air is filled with a beautiful but elusive scent. A cat’s tail would not be the first place one would go when hunting down such a scent, but in the fynbos that is one of the primary sources of night-time fragrance.…
Climbing plants are uncommon in fynbos. The principle behind a climbing plant in forest or bushveld is to reach the light above when other plants have a head start. So in fynbos, when every 20 years or so the canopy is burnt to the ground and all plants are back…
We are all too familiar with modern marketing claims that boast about wonder drugs, but traditional herbal medicines were not immune from such exaggeration either. The so called Eight-day healing bush or Agtdaegeneesbos, Lobostemon, is a Cape member of the Borage family, Boraginaceae. There are about 28 species of Lobostemon,…
We are all familiar with the large showy flowers of proteas; some like the King Proteas are as large as dinner plates. But there are a range of proteas that are more discrete in their flowering, keeping their flowers tucked away at the base of their stems. These are the…
