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…
Many bulbous plants are stimulated to flower following a fire. However, for many of these plants, they do not require a fire as such but for the surrounding vegetation to be cleared. In which case, while the species may flower most profusely after a fire, individuals can often flower where…
Pink and yellow may not be people’s first choice when it comes to home décor or fashion, but when it occurs naturally the combination is exquisite. Here at Phillipskop, we have two species of Oxalis that flower at the same time and in more or less the same habitat: the…
Small white candles of Bulbinella trinervis have appeared scattered through the fynbos. Their slender columns of starry white flowers top a leafless flowering stem that is hard to detect. The flowers belie the genus’s close relationship to their bold bright cousin, the red-hot pokers, Kniphofia. However, the larger species do…
Clearing alien vegetation from the land is important to prevent further spread, but there is also the hope that somewhere beneath the impenetrable thicket some semblance of the native flora has remained intact. In the few places where aliens do grow on our land, they are not very thick. But…
Although very diverse, the genus Oxalis is easily recognisable. The leaves nearly always comprise of 3 leaflets that arise from a central point (there are a few species that have more leaflets or only one). The flowers are also very regular, made up of 5 petals that form a tube…
