June hikes before times turned MORE interesting
by Diana Studer
- gardening for biodiversity
in Cape Town, South Africa
Hiking among wildflowers
in the mountains
around Cape Town
In June I hiked twice with my Fynbos Ramblers. First to Junction Pool in Silvermine East. We were heading for the wetland and new plants, but some of us were waylaid by the lenticular clouds. Flying saucers R Us. A journey through South Africa's ecosystems
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| Lenticular clouds |
Capelio tabularis tall yellow daisies with velvety grey on the leaves. A littl'un with no ray florets Senecio triqueter. Oxalis commutata among moss on a streamside boulder. Bristly pineapple-reed Hypodiscus aristatus. Tomato red Gladiolus priorii.
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| Daisies and friends at Silvermine Junction in June |
This is the Junction. Where they trashed the green stuff (in a National Park) for road maintenance!
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| Road maintenance at Silvermine Junction Trash the green stuff! |
Gentle limy green Erica urna-viridis. Radiating pink Erica abietina atrorosea. A different asparagus, climbing with broad leaves A. kraussianus. Milkweed sort of climber Astephanus triflorus. Mimetes fimbriifolius against that sapphire blue winter sky. Tight pompom buds Brunia noduliflora.
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| Ericas and friends at Silvemine Junction in June |
Over time those sandstone cliffs erode, the tumbled slabs carved by rain and painted in lichen.
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| Eroded sandstone from the cliffs |
Next the Red Track at Cape Point. It is, straight, and flat, and we always find interesting flowers! Brunia abrotanoides displaying its vivid Red Legs. Up close and personal with Mimetes fimbriifolius (= hairs on leaf margin) Golden Serruria villosa. Buttery yellow Gnidia oppositifolia and clear white Struthiola dodecandra (has 12 stamens, they say) Pink bracts opening to white Metalasia densa.
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| Fynbos from the Red Track at Cape Point in June |
Restios flowering side by side in coffee and caramel.
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| Coffee and caramel restios in June |
Ericas all the way. White bells Erica capensis, endemic to Cape Point. Salt and pepper E. imbricata. Covered in pink E. glabella has slender tubes. Mielie heath (corn on the cob) E. patersonii. Tubby pink vases E. obliqua.
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| Ericas along the Red Track at Cape Point in June |
A wider view of where many eyes hunt for our target species, and anything new for today's list.
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| Cape Point along the Red Track |
Among the bulbs. These flaming sparks of red with golden hearts Gladiolus merianellus (formerly bonaspei = Good Hope) A last Tritoniopsis dodii. Oxalis commutata again, and twirled candy-cane O. versicolor.
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| Cape Point Red Track bulbs in June |
We have had unrest, rioting and devastating looting - mostly in Gauteng (Johannesburg) and Kwazulu-Natal (Durban). News from Al Jazeera, serious journalism whittled down to portions.
From Nelson Mandela “During my lifetime I have dedicated myself to this struggle of the African people. I have fought against white domination, and I have fought against black domination. I have cherished the ideal of a democratic and free society in which all persons live together in harmony and with equal opportunities. It is an ideal which I hope to live for and to achieve. But if needs be, it is an ideal for which I am prepared to die.” Listening to that gives me goosebumps (with music on Facebook)
Archbishop Desmond Tutu 'There comes a point where we need to stop just pulling people out of the river. We need to go upstream and find out why they're falling in.'
We have a cold snap rolling in from Antarctica, Tuesday night to Sunday across Southern Africa including Botswana and Namibia.
Our hikes are listed on my page.
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Thanks for comments that add value. Your comment will not appear until I've read it. No Google account? Use Anonymous, then please include a link to your own blog. I welcome comments on posts from the last 2 months.
Times seem to be "interesting" all over the world these days. I'm sorry violence reached into your part of it. As always, your hikes are inspiring and the flowers and foliage you photograph provide beauty to counter ugliness (even when interrupted by irresponsible road maintenance).
ReplyDeleteHello Diana thank you for stopping by my blog ;-)
ReplyDeleteI look at your photos of plants and landscapes and it all seems like you are on a beautiful alien planet .. so different from what I am used to .. so detailed and interesting.
I am very sorry about the violence and despair so many people are going through in your country. The world is going through complicated difficult times spurred on by the virus, but we tend to turn inwards and miss what others are going through. The problems were there before the virus but it seems to have lit the fuse to it all.
I hope these situations will get better when the virus is under control and resources can go back to helping people rise above poverty and have access to education.
Take care and stay safe !
Hi Diana - just stopping by because it's been ages! How are you? Love all your wildflowers. I always imagine that I would know more of them as so many of your plants are grown around the world, but no, most I have never heard of. The heathers are amazing! Not been keeping up with what is happening in SA, not much being reported on our news, I don't think. All about Boris and German floods here (I'm watching UK telly). Take care and stay safe.
ReplyDeleteInteresting times everywhere - plague island and floods - on my news sources too.
DeleteDue for our second vaccination tomorrow.
Hi again, many thanks for all the comments on my blog which I have replied to. I don't know if you click on the notify me button to send you the replies to your comment or not, but I have copied what I wrote about Feedio to post here. Before I do that, it's funny you said 'plague island' as that is what we used to call G. Britain in the past, as we always caught colds from people coming from there! If only we had known what was to come in the future..... glad you are getting your 2nd jab.
Delete"Hi Diana - I am happy with Feedio - they have the personal touch - however their blog posts go straight into people's spam/junk folders! Not best pleased with that, so not sure I would recommend it for that reason. Even though I subscribe myself, to check that it's working, it wasn't until my cousin emailed me to let me know that I realised! You also can't decide on a time that your blog post goes out, it seems to just go out as soon as you have published it (not that that bothers me).
As I don't know most of my subscribers from adam, I don't feel that I should email them personally to let them know. Most are people who subscribed years ago and they probably just delete them for all I know. Yes I prefer Feedly too, though I sometimes use Bloglovin. You are still in mine, but I didn't blog for a long time so didn't read blogs much either. "
I've been thinking about you lately, with some of the stories of the unrest hitting out news programs, too. We watch CNN quite a bit, and they tend to cover more news from all parts of the world. I also noticed that you are having some chilly nights. I hope your plants will be OK. Thanks for sharing the highlights from your hikes--hiking is such good exercise and good therapy.
ReplyDeletePlants will be fine - it won't be too cold for them - no frost here!
DeleteMore Erica species! And that Oxalis versicolor is a charmer.
ReplyDeleteI wondered how close to you the rioting and looting had come. I was watching the coverage on BBC America, and they only mentioned Johannesburg and Durban. Glad to hear Capetown was not experiencing this. These are certainly trying times.
Hi Diana I have been thinking of you and glad you are safe. I love both your quotes but I think the Desmond Tutu quote is particularly true and relevant. More jobs for people so that they can live above the poverty line.
ReplyDeleteI think my previous comment didn't work? Sorry if duplicating.
ReplyDeleteHave been thinking of you with the situation in SA. Wonderful quotes. Here we have the famous quote from Dr. Martin Luther King, "The arc of the moral universe is long but it bends towards justice."
Best wishes, and again, so enjoy your lovely SA wildflowers. My SA Ericas here just starting to flower again--they are so beautiful!
Not duplicated. And twice appreciated.
DeleteDear Diana,
ReplyDeletevisiting your blog is always amazing for me above all you are bringing me to your wonderful country. You know I'm a traveller eager to see other landscapes, flowers, cultures and meet different people. Thank you for taking me to your part of the world. Good to read your are safe. And I really love the quote of Desmond Tutu - sooooooo wise!!!
Take care and have a safe and happy time
Elisabeth
Wonderful photos! I love seeing wildflowers from different countries :)
ReplyDeleteGorgeous! Thanks for taking us along.
ReplyDeleteAmalia
xo
You always come back from your Fynbos hikes with an array of wildflowers - it makes me wonder if you know their names in advance or whether you have to do your research later. Wonderful array of Ericas especially the pistachio green one and candy-cane oxalis in its native habitat. I favour the O. vulcanicola Zinfandel and managed to save one from last year through our late winter snow
ReplyDeleteWe look for some - That Erica Should be Blooming Here Today. I have been going thru today's photos, some named, some maybe, some waiting for feedback from research across our group.
DeleteDear Diana,
ReplyDeleteyes, in our media they also reported quite seriously about these unrest - a bad thing. I hope the situation really calms down again. But as long as there is such a large gap between rich and poor, it is unlikely that this will change enough.
Your landscape and plant photos are a welcome change from bad "the-world situation"-stories. I was particularly impressed by the luminous color of the Gladiolus merianellus!
Caress your little Lady Zoe from me :-)
All the best, Traude
https://rostrose.blogspot.com/2021/07/kommt-mit-ins-mohn-dorf-teil-1.html
Those papered over cracks between rich and poor have been exposed by COVID lockdown across the world. UK missing its migrant / foreign labour, first to harvest crops, and now to drive trucks. Germany and abattoir workers. People crammed into dormitories unable to isolate. Seamen trapped on ships unable to get home. Poor Australians still, trying to get home. Indian labourers walking back to rural villages.
DeleteZoe must have heard you calling - she disappeared for hours - she likes under the garage roof - UP and gone ... now back for dinner!
Your hikes always have so much interest to show us. Archbishop Desmond Tutu, how I used to enjoy his enthusiasm and wise words.
ReplyDelete