A Year Later Sunday Flower Walk

It's exactly a year since the fire swept through the patch of fynbos we've been monitoring for several years. In places it was particularly 'hot' because of the amount of pine trash lying around after the trees were harvested. On reflection the re-growth has been very different from, say the areas which were burnt just a month ago at the other end of the valley. There, the shrubs are re-sprouting already, ours like the Brachylaena neriifolia seem to be taking a long time.

Those which have most noticeably benefitted by the fire, apart from the Pelargoniums with their enormous leaves, are the Lobelias! We used to get excited about Lobelia jasionoides. Now there are areas carpeted with them!

Lobelia jasionoides

The old faithful blue ones which never seemed to stop flowering seem to have more flowers and the blue seems deeper! L. coronopifolia?

Lobelia coronopifolia (?)

Then the Roellas which had become quite scarce have come back with enormous flowers!

Roella

These look like Psoralea pinnata, although the shrub they're growing on is so much smaller than we're used to. These have grown to about a metre since the fire.

Psoralea pinnata

The Purple Powder-puffs Pseudoselago serrata are really over. Here was about the last bloom we found:

Pseudoselago serrata

What is this, with its Datura-type pods?

Unknown!

We remember where the Leucospermum oleifolium was growing. It had been badly damaged by the tree felling, then burnt. Gardening tips say one must just leave them to grow, so it was with pleasure but not much surprise that we found no less than 14 plants growing up in that immediate area! There are three in a row:

Leucospermum oleifolium

In that immediate area we knew we should also find Liparia splendens. These, too have re-established themselves strongly and are about to flower:

Liparia splendens

I mentioned the Pelargoniums, the leaves are great, the flowers few.

Pelargonium

On the way home, in the gravel road where we always find the Sundews Drosera, their place has been taken by these, not sure what they are!

Unknown

We couldn't go past the dam on the Experimental farm without looking at the Nymphaea nouchali!

Nymphaea nouchali

Some are almost high and dry!

Nymphaea nouchali

:-) A