Late, short Sunday Flower Walk

We were in Cape Town today for Mother's 93rd Birthday Party and got back late. Not wishing to disappoint you all, we went up into 'our' patch to monitor the re-growth after the fire, which was now 3½ weeks ago.

Last week we featured a bush which had grown phenomenally in 2½ weeks, and Pat and Jennetta both kindly identified it as Fire Asparagus Asparagus lignosus. Tony Rebelo, who has in this last week patiently guided me through the process of loading observations on iSpot, agrees http://www.ispotnature.org/node/651088

Today we found another, even bigger:

Pippa shows how big this Fire Asparagus Asparagus lignosus has grown 

Pippa gives an idea of the size; the stems are a metre long already! At each node is a very sharp thorn and the shoot grows from the axil. (Hands still covered in Steenvas from yesterday at Mostert's Mill, despite much scrubbing! see http://compagnesdriftmill.blogspot.com/)

Growing tip and buds of Asparagus lignosus

Close by was the remains of a Bobartia (I wouldn't dare guess which!). It seems to have survived the fire  well.

Bobartia after the fire

.... and it looks as if the seeds could be ready to be dispersed.

Bobartia seed pods

We never realised there were so many, but this is but one of many Lanaria lanata (thanks Pat for the confirmation). They shot up quickly after the fire, the green is now mostly 200 to 300mm tall, and the rapid growth seems to have slowed.

Lanaria lanata

This looks like a Daisy, the one we think is a Euryops, shooting from the base already.

Euryops (?) regrowth from the base

We went to where we knew many Watsonia schlechteri were growing, and we weren't disappointed.

Watsonia schlechteri

This tortoise didn't make it :-(

Burnt tortoise and Lanaria lanata

We went back to where we found another 'new' plant last week:

Tulbaghia alliacea

Again, both Pat and Jennetta suggested Tulbaghia alliacea. Yes, I nibbled a leaf, and I'm still burping garlic! I still couldn't freeze the flowers!

Tulbaghia alliacea flowers

We went on to where Pippa was sketching new-found Agapanthus walshii a couple of months ago, to find them also recovering: 

Agapanthus walshii

On our way home we found the remains of a burned Brachylaena neriifolia which we could recognise by the flowers.

Burnt Brachylaena neriifolia flowers

Here again, there is re-growth from the base already:

Brachylaena neriifolia re-growth at the base

It will be interesting to see how the new growth takes over the old.

Brachylaena neriifolia plant with re-growth at the base, after 3½ weeks

There should be a New Moon out there somewhere!

Sunset!

:-) A

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