Just Oxalis for Colour Sunday Flower Walk

There's lots of green in the burned area, especially if you look against the sun, but for the rest, there are Oxalis in yellow (luteola?) in plenty:

Oxalis luteola

..... and pink:

Pink Oxalis

Pippa has a sore leg so we walked a reasonable distance and when we found something interesting, she sat down and drew it while I fossicked around.

Pippa drawing, with company!

We have seen this before, but not with its visitor!

Caterpillar and plant we're watching!

I had just seen another:

Another caterpillar

On the way up, we found that the Gladiolus carneus (?) leaves have been chomped off, yet again!

Gladiolus carneus, eaten off again!

We've had over 40mm of rain in a day in this last week so it was interesting to see the erosion we've been expecting:

Erosion from 40+mm rain in a day

More erosion

I had difficulty finding the Daisy we found in flower last week, mainly because it had also been chewed off. I placed photos of it on iSpot and the consensus is that it's Othonna heterophylla.

Othonna heterophylla

I was particularly interested to check the underside of the leaves, which are glossy. The leaves themselves are quite fleshy.

Underside of leaf

I found one more a short distance away with two buds on.

Bud on another plant close by

The leaves are not as toothed as on the other plant, but apparently leaf shape on this species is very variable.

Leaf detail on the other plant

I found another unfamiliar Daisy; one flower has gone to seed already.

Unfamiliar Daisy buds and spent flower

Only now reviewing the photo, I notice the Ladybird!

Whole plant and Ladybird

Here's another of the little plants we haven't tracked down yet, with the ribbed leaves. This was in a completely different location.

What is this?

.... and as usual, plenty of these with the Wachendorfia-type leaves.....

One day we'll get a flower and we'll have the answer!

..... but growing very differently compared with those we know well, W. paniculata:

We know what flower to expect from this! 

During the week Pippa has found come interesting fungi on the farm. I put a picture of this Earth Star on iSpot and the experts are happy it's Geastrum pectinatum:

Earth Star Geastrum pectinatum

..... but there have been no comments on this one yet:

Unknown Fungus

This morning there was a persistent peep-peep from the top of the lightning-struck pine:

Who is this? 

Any ideas?

:-) A

After the first Big Rain Sunday Flower Walk

There was more than 80mm in the gauge for this week, so we were interested to see how much erosion might have taken place. In fact, it wasn't bad.

But in the un-burned area, I always stop and look at the Buchu Agathosma crenulata. The tiny flowers are beautiful and difficult to photograph with my little camera. There are many seedlings coming up around it, so I'm very careful where I tread!

Buchu Agathosma crenulata flower

The Gladiolus carneus I have marked with logs have been chewed off short. There are rabbit tracks around, I hope they will flourish like they did last year!

Gladiolus carneus (we think!)

What little colour there is at the moment is supplied by Oxalis. Mostly yellow where we walked today.

Yellow Oxalis

The rain doesn't seem to have washed much sand down, but certainly there's a lot of ash in the run-offs on the road.

Ash being washed down, but little sand

We're still intrigued by the different leaves on the Wachendorfias. These growing flat on the ground make amazing patterns!

Why is this Wachendorfia growing like this? 

These are the familiar ones, Wachendorfia paniculata:

This is the Wachendorfia paniculata we know

There really is a lot of green in places! These are Lanaria lanata and bulbs; we're still hoping that some are Tritoniopsis.

Lots of green! Lanaria lanata and bulbs

Might this be Rhus/Searsia coming up, with ribbed leaves in threes?

What is this?

Interesting to see Ladybirds again; we know where they breed, we must go and look!

Ladybird

Agapanthus walshii, recovering well!

Agapanthus walshii, growing well! 

We think these are Five-toothed Baboon Cabbage Othonna quinquedentata. The notches on the leaves are easy to pick out. This one has started to grow upwards.

Five toothed Baboon Cabbage Othonna quinquedentata

We were particularly looking for these tiny plants:

What is this tiny plant?

From the side:

From the side

We've marked them, and we'll go back and see what they turn into! Any ideas?

Just then, Jane came riding by on her Appaloosa on the edge of the burned veld ......

Jane on her Appaloosa

On the way back in the orchard, we nearly walked into this! Ever wondered why our tractor drivers attach a vertical wire like a radio aerial to the front of their tractors?

Spider and web

Instead walked along the next row and found this little Ink Cap:

Ink Cap

And that, Dear Readers, is our 100th Flower Walk! :-) A

Warm Sunday Flower Walk

In the week I was working on Elgin Ridge Organic Wine farm. Outside the cellar is a succulent garden which is looking really good at the moment! This Malachite Sunbird was feasting from aloe to aloe.

Malachite Sunbird on Aloe at Elgin Ridge

This Aloe looks different from any I have ever seen:

Unknown Aloe at Elgin Ridge

A pink Sour Fig Carpobrotus is spreading all over the rock wall. Could it be C. acinaciformis?

Carpobrotus acinaciformis?

In 'our' area, the 'normal' Sour Fig Carpobrotus edulis is also in flower, but just here and there.

Carpobrotus edulis

Where we will later see the Nymphea nouchalis with its round leaves in the Experimental farm dam, for the moment the area is taken up by oval-leaved Waterblommetjies Aponogeton distachyos or Cape Pondweed, Vleikos or Water Hawthorn, the picked buds and flowers are popular locally in stews! 

Waterblommetjies Apongeton distachyos

Pippa had done some preparatory snooping yesterday and we followed her path to photograph her 'finds'. This pink/mauve Erica is taking over from the previous ones, now all spent and burned brown.

Mauve Erica taking over from earlier types

Here is just one flower stem, showing short bell-type flowers:

Flower detail of above Erica

We had to criss-cross an area to locate her 'find', in the meantime coming across many different Restios. Anina says she thinks this one is Restio capensis:

Restio capensis?

The tangled look of this one above made me think it's 'mate' was perhaps this one, not far away:

Restio capensis? 

Detail of the flower of the upper one, a female Restio capensis:

Female Restio capensis flower

This looked like a Mum & Dad Hypodiscus aristatus:

Hypodiscus aristatus female & male

With this flower on one, male Hypodiscus aristatus:

Hypodiscus aristatus male flower

More Hypodiscus aristatus male flowers

More Hypodiscus aristatus flowers above, and female below:

Hypodiscus aristatus female flower

And another with crooked stems which Anina says is Restio egregius:

Restio egregius

With these (male) flowers:

Restio egregius male flower

Whoever thought thatch reeds were just thatch reeds? At last we found what we were looking for:

Phaenocoma prolifera flower

A single Phaenocoma prolifera plant! While a few kilometres away near the reservoir I visited recently, there are carpets of them, this is only the second example we've found in 'our' patch, and it's not a young plant either! Nearby we found this young Leucadendron (we think!) with red old leaves and a reddish edge to the new leaves:

Unknown Leucadendron

Close by were some different pink Ericas:

Pink Erica

The flowers are much longer than the previous one and not belled-out at the tips of the petals. It was alive with bees and other insects.

Flower detail of above pink Erica

A female Stonechat (?) Prinia (?) with spent Elegia mucronata male flowers:

Bird on Elegia mucronata male flowers

This is what the Struthiola ciliata look like now!

Struthiola ciliata

Flower detail:

Struthiola ciliata flowers

We're noticing more and more of these Cyphia volubilis, Klim-op or Baroe climbing along all kinds of host plants.

Cyphia volubilis or Baroe

Cyphia volubilis or Baroe flower detail

The tufted leaves on this Erica and the spent flowers make us think it's an E. coccinea.

Erica coccinea with spent flowers?

Here is a spent flower:

Spent flower of Erica coccinea?

By this time we were in the road where we found the strange small plant growing out of corms. On the way, we found this one growing, also in the road, straight out of the ground, could it be the same?

Unknown plant in road

Unknown plant in road and corms.

While I was on my knees I noticed this tiny flower on some moss, or is it a Drosera?

Moss flower or Drosera?

We went off to look at the Ladybirds we'd found in hollows in rocks last week, having thought they were wasp eggs until studying the photos!

Pippa inspecting holes in rockface

They were still in the first hole we discovered:

Ladybirds in original hole

So we looked further. Yes, several other holes were occupied!

More ladybirds in another hole.

.... and a single one in another hole. Note the white head with the black pattern and five black spots:

White head of Ladybird can be seen

So which kind are they?

This young Sour Fig Carpobrotus has established itself in a saucer-sized dish of sand in a hollow of the rock close by. No doubt it will survive and thrive! 

Carpobrotus in tiny patch of sand

These twin Lobelia tomentosa flowers were growing at the end of one stalk!

Twin Lobelia tomentosa flowers! 

The Violas were being more photogenic today!

Viola flower detail

We don't know of any others, but this patch covers about two square metres!

Patch of Violas

Lobelia pinifolia?

Lobelia pinifolia?

Red Full Moon tonight!

Red Full Moon!

:-) A