Cold and Wet Sunday Flower Walk

The wind was straight from the South Pole and we had a shower at the highest, furthest part of our walk! However, it takes more than that to shake off your hardy Flower Walkers!

I had a feeling we would find no other colour than green on our walk, so I snapped the Prickly Pear Opuntia at the ruins of the Railway Cottages.

Prickly Pear Opuntia

The re-growth all over is really impressive especially up close. From a distance the hills still look dark grey. But views like these give us an idea of the Spring we can expect:

Lots of bulbs coming up!

We're not sure what they are, but we're pretty sure we remember a pink Watsonia borbonica here:

We think this is a pink Watsonia borbonica

All the Agapanthus walshii plants we remember are coming back, in most cases, invigorated.

Agapanthus walshii

These Fungi we will have to look up or put on iSpot; growing in the cracks of a rotten pine stump.

Unknown fungus

We think (hope!) this is a Liparia splendens, coming back with a bang!

Liparia splendens? 

A Daisy?

Daisy? 

Another Daisy?

Another Daisy, but different? 

We thought these would be tightly closed; our 'new find' from last week, Oxalis polyphylla.

Oxalis polyphylla

This is re-growing in a crack in the rock:

Rhus / Searsia? 

Last week, Dominic told us that if the leaves were growing in threes, it was a strong indication that these are Rhus / Searsia:

Three leaves

... and Pat said that if one folds a leaf and gets a white stripe when folded back flat, it would be a further indication to particular Searsia. But I forgot to fold it! And forgot which one anyway!

But this is definitely something else, maybe the Cape Myrtle Myrsine africana that Dominic suggested:

Cape Myrtle Myrsine africana?

We're finding plenty of them, and the leaves are pointed and grow opposite one another in pairs.

We're still perplexed by these Wachendorfias with curved leaves growing flat on the ground:

Wachendorfia, but which one?

Just 35 paces from the one above, are these which we are pretty sure, are Wachendorfia paniculata:

Wachendorfia paniculata, we think!

We know the W. thyrsiflora is the tall one in river beds, and there's W. brachyandra and W. multiflora, and that's it! Maybe the curved flat ones are W. paniculata which got hotter in the fire?

This is going to be interesting!?

Wait and see!

Just before the rain came, we saw this strange phenomenon; clouds of vapour coming up from the forest!

Clouds of vapour coming out of the forest, just before the rain

The Eikenhof Dam should start filling now that irrigation has stopped.

:-) A

Gloomy Sunday Flower Walk

Yes, gloomy and overcast and a South-westerly wind from Gordon's Bay. We've had a few light showers since the fire, but no real rain so far.

Lack of sunshine meant that our 'new find for the day' was closed, Oxalis Polyphylla which we've never noticed before!

Oxalis polyphylla

The more normal pink Oxalis has a clover-like leaf, we saw some later:

Our more familiar pink Oxalis

In the middle upper part of the picture above is a plant we have started to find, not sure what it will turn into, but we're watching!

On the way out we found some puff-balls Scleroderma citrinum (?) which are easily mistaken for stones in the road:

Puffballs in the track

Another Puffball

We're still finding plenty of Swollen Restio Beetles Pseudorupilia on the new growth of Restios, but not on any of the tufts of grass.

Swollen Restio Beetle Pseudorupilia

The densest stand we've found so far of Agapanthus walshii is coming along nicely!

Agapanthus walshii, doing well!

The Leucospermum oleifolium nearby is doing nothing yet.

Leucospermum oleifolium, no sign of life since the fire

What I'd hoped would be re-shooting at the base of the Heeria, is in fact Pelargonium!

Pelargoniums growing at the base of the burned Heeria

In places the Pelargoniums are coming up well!

Pelargoniums

Where the fire was hottest, the Palmiet has burned off completely and there's no sign of shooting. In other places, it's very encouraging.

Palmiet, recovering

We're still confused with the bushes we're seeing shooting from their bases. These leaves are in threes and are veined diagonally from the centre.

We had thought this might be Cape Myrtle but it's all wrong!

The burned remains of berries can be found.

Detail of a burned branch, with berries

New leaf detail:

Leaf detail, showing radiating veins

In many cases, these were saved from the worst of the fire's heat by their growing next to or between rocks. Here's another:

Another similar plant

How lucky we are to live here!

Eikenhof Dam and Groenlandberg

We found just two Tritoniopsis lata today, but what's that behind?  

Tritoniopsis lata

We were able to have a good look at the leaves here, definitely multi-ribbed:

Leaf detail

What might this be, next to an Oxalis?

What are these leaves?

We found several Fire Asparagus Asparagus Lignosus, this one's berries have turned dark:

Asparagus lignosus with dark berries

Others are still green.

Asparagus lignosus with still-green berries

And some are still in flower:

Asparagus lignosus in flower still

This gives an idea of how densely they sometimes grow!

Dense stand of Asparagus lignosus

'Till next time, from the Wurm.....

Wurm on the alert

.... and the Boy, who was determined to get in the pictures, every time!

I want to be in this picture!

:-) A

Tritoniopsis lata Sunday Flower Walk

Well, that was the most spectacular flower, and we found only one!

Tritoniopsis lata flower

The whole plant isn't very robust, with a single narrow leaf:

Tritoniopsis lata plant

This left us wondering what we are expecting from these two plants, with very different leaves. With the sun behind, this one has about four distinct parallel ribs, and it's growing from a bulb:

Bulb with four ribs in the leaves

.... and this one which has just one rib in the middle, and it's growing in a fan like an iris:

Iris-type with one rib

In that area, there are Wachendorfias with curved leaves growing close to the ground. They almost reminded us of Welwitschias!

Wachendorfia, growing close to the ground, why? 

Are they Wachendorfia paniculata, or something else which we haven't found before, brought on by the fire?

Another Wachendorfia

As usual, we had to look for colours other than the steady increase of green. Yellow Oxalis:

Yellow Oxalis

Carpets of them in places!

Yellow Oxalis carpet!

Pink also!

 And pink Oxalis!

It was good to see Anka training as usual, both she and the horse must be very fit! She is just passing the stand of Agapanthus walshii which are coming up nicely!

Anka training, riding past Agapanthus walshii

We've never found them in this place before.

These are those Agapanthus walshii

Pippa the archaeologist had a find! Unfortunately not Stone-Age!

Archaeologist finds iron-age axe ;-)

Here's a Daisy which we think is Euryops.

Daisy, is it an Euryops?

I have been taught to photograph the underside of the flower, so here it is. Any ideas? :

Detail of the underside of the Daisy

Here's something coming up strongly after the fire; can't quite place it yet.......

What is this, growing up after the fire?

And who's this, what will it turn into? What can it possibly find to eat? Or is it a wood-borer?

Caterpillar on bark and stump, no greens around!

The Fire Asparagus Asparagus lignosus have berries on them now and the lime green of their leaves has turned duller. The thorns are just as sharp!

Fire Asparagus Asparagus lignosus berries and now dull green leaves

We wondered what this might be, with a fleshy, smooth, almost succulent leaf. Trying to remember what was growing here before the fire, Pippa suggested Othonna quinquedentata, five toothed Baboon Cabbage. Could the 'five teeth' be from the shape of the leaves?

Can this be Othonna quinquedentata? 

I'm not sure if the Ladybird has been eating the leaves of this grass (?) like that?

Ladybird on grass, has it eaten the tips off? 

From the heights, we were puzzled by the look of a train coming past. Part passenger? Phelophela Health Care Train? No, a massive weedkill rig, Contra-Chem.

Contra-Chem weedkill train

We don't expect to see many birds in the burned area, but this one was hopping around quickly, close to the ground, from stump to stump at the very limit of my camera's range, pecking the ground here and there. Looked fat enough! About the size of an Olive Thrush, any ideas?

Could this be a Pipit?

This, outside the farm this morning, was easier to identify! Well, by its old name Gymnogene, anyway. Now African Harrier Hawk Polyboroides typus.

Gymnogene, African Harrier Hawk Polyboroides typus

Yesterday at the Compagnes Drift Watermill the Forest Elder (Bosvlier) Nuxia floribunda is looking spectacular! One visitor asked both Noel and me, separately, if we knew what it was. We both surprised him!

Nuxia floribunda at Compagnes Drift Watermill

Also there, the Pig's Ears Cotyledon obiculata (?) are in flower.

Cotyledon obiculata (?)

Along with this succulent, can anybody name it?

Unknown succulent

And here in the garden, a Granadilla Passiflora ligularis in last week's shower! My wife tells me I'm a big dummy, it's a Clematis! The plants are in a complete tangle there, with this Clematis, the Granadilla, a Hanepoot grape, a climbing rose, a Pandorea jasminoides, and behind, a huge Camellia and a Yesterday-today-and-tomorrow!

Clematis in the garden, after rain

 :-) A