Almost all Blue Sunday Flower Walk

We've moved away from the yellows, and much of what we saw today was in various shades of blue, starting with the Roella ciliata:

They seem to be taller than the ones we remember from two years ago, before the big fire in this area. 

We always see Lobelias, those with the bright blue large flowers we think is L. tomentosa:

Although most are past their best, there are still Agapanthus walshii in flower:

This one below had us excited, was it the elusive white one? No, but a very pale blue:

It was pleasing to check that this one had been logged, finding my present position exactly the same as one marked 'AW Lower Rocky Ridge'. 

The deep blue of the Purple Powder Puff Pseudoselago serrata, after an impressive season, is nearly over.

There were even still a few flowers on occasional Psoralea pinnata:

Pinks, oranges and reds seemed to be the other colour of the day. Although many of these Watsonia schlechteri have gone to seed, there are still many in bud, so we'll be seeing them for a while yet.

Before the fire, we pinpointed what we thought were Erica obliqua. We have searched that location carefully since without success. About 100 metres away we have found a strong population, perhaps 20 plants so far, of what we hope is the same:

Welcome back!

Also pleasing to see in that vicinity, another old favourite (the Ericas seem to have recovered the slowest!) Erica pulchella:

We specially went back to look at a Protea-type which we've been watching for weeks now. Only one tiny flower opened in the middle of December, and we found it today, actually loose from the plant, but held in place by branches of new growth. We left it there, to mature fully and disperse seeds. 

There are about eight plants in a small area. The closest we get to identifying it from the books is Leucospermum bolusii, but if it is, it's way out of its area, supposed to be the slopes above Gordon's Bay. The tips of the new growth are pinkish:

What can it be?

It's nice to see the Brachylaena neriifolia in flower again! The shrubs have a lot of growing to do to reach the size of some of those which were burnt!

It's always nice to go home past the Prickly Pear Opuntia in the garden of the ruins of the Railway Foreman's house:

:-) Andy

Watsonia borbonica Sunday Flower Walk

I said the Prickly Pear Opuntia would be impressive! There's a bee on one of the flowers.

Prickly Pear Opuntia

I have been seeing Combflowers Micranthus on the farms for a few weeks already, so it was no surprise to see them starting to flower today in this area. In a week or two there will be hundreds of them!

Combflower Micranthus

Pippa noticed this splash of pink from far away!

Watsonia borbonica?

It's in the unburnt part and the leaves are well established. We think it's Watsonia borbonica.

Flower detail

There was another one, in the burnt area, which can be seen in the background, growing over nicely!

Another example

Here's a Purple Powder Puff Pseudoselago serrata, one of the best developed we've seen so far, also in the burnt area:

Purple Powder Puff Pseudoselago serrata

The flower up close, as usual with bright blue bugs crawling over it.

Flowers and bugs

Agapanthus walshii! In this small area I counted 35 flowers or buds!

Agapanthus walshii

In another stand of them we were disappointed to find many of the closed buds have been bored into already. It will be interesting to see if any viable flowers come out.

Agapanthus walshii bud, bored

I think I was lucky last Sunday to spot the Corymbium glabrum var. glabrum open. It's almost over already!

Corymbium glabrum var. glabrum

While we were in that area we checked up on the Heeria argentea which was severely burned. It's coming back nicely!

Heeria argentea

Could this be an Erica coming back at last?

Erica? 

Also growing back nicely from the burnt remains, Water White Alder Brachylaena neriifolia:

Brachylaena neriifolia

In a week, we seem to have missed the flowering of the big Pelargoniums!

Pelargonium spent flowers

Part of 'paying our dues' to be in this beautiful area involves pulling out aliens, in this case Port Jackson Acacia saligna and Black Wattle. This was just one bunch of several.

Port Jackson and Black Wattle, pulled out

The remains of three Wachendorfia paniculata flowers!

Wachendorfia paniculata spent flowers

Back at home, during the week past, the Sprekelia opened, just for a day or two!

Sprekelia, at home

.... and these wine-coloured Arums!

.... and Arums

:-) A

Ceiba speciosa Sunday Flower Walk

Actually it was on Friday, our May Day holiday, that I saw the Ceibas (formerly Chorisia) and had driven past them before I realised what I'd been past! There is a row of these spiny-barked Silk Floss Ceiba speciosa trees next to the gate of the farm Le Chasseur on a back road near Robertson.

Flowers of Silk Floss Tree Ceiba speciosa with single or combined stamen

The flowers are difficult to miss! It seems the row is a collection, because there is a pale one too.

Pale version, also with single stamen

The single stamens on all of these flowers differ from those on the tree here in the Village outside Grabouw Auto Electrical, which have five individual stamens.

Multiple stamens here in Grabouw

The story behind these trees in South Africa began with a pillow brought from South America stuffed with the floss from the seed pods of this plant. A lump was found which turned out to be a seed. It was planted and it flourished!

The Bolivian Legend of the Toborochi Tree (Chorisia speciosa) goes like this: When the world was still very new, the Aña, or spirits of the darkness, liked to abuse and murder humans. Then they found out that Araverá, the beautiful daughter of cacique Ururuti, who had married the Hummingbird god Colibri, was pregnant and would give birth to a son who would punish them, so they decided to kill her. With the help of a flying seat her husband had given to her, Araverá fled from the village, but the evil spirits followed her and harassed her wherever they found her hiding. Tired, she decided to hide in the trunk of a Toborochi tree where she gave birth to her son in peace.The boy grew up and fulfilled the prophecy, avenging his mother, who had to stay inside the tree until she died. Forever buried in the amphora-shaped trunk of a Toborochi, Araverá likes to come outside in the shape of a beautiful flower that attracts hummingbirds, that way, she keeps contact with her husband.

The tree in Grabouw

There seems to be no agreement over the single and multiple stamens and the general comment is that they have hybridised over the years and may well have before being imported.

At least that gives some colour to the 'walk' which was decidedly lacking in it, except for green which gets more every week. We had a little rain this last week which must have helped.

We checked the Gladiolus carneus we tracked down two weeks ago and were disappointed to see some animal had dug up some of the bulbs. We put them back and covered them and we'll hope for the best.

We think these are Gladiolus carneus, dug up by an animal

The yellow Oxalis give a bit of colour here and there.....

Yellow Oxalis

..... as do the pink ones, although it was overcast and they were closing.

Pink Oxalis

Anina told us to look out for the branched and frilly sterile culms which will come up first out of the burned remains of the Restios. These are beginning to appear, but with them (and them only), we spotted insects.

The iSpot experts agree these are Swollen Restio Beetles Pseudorupilia, but which one? 

More on the way?

I have put a request for identification on iSpot.

More Restio beetles

This Wachendorfia is looking spectacular, the one behind it seems to have been eaten off. There are many rabbit tracks.

Wachendorfia, probably W. paniculata

Not sure what this is, but it's growing nicely out of a burned stump!

Unknown bush re-growing

This one I do recognise as a Brachylaena neriifolia.

Brachylaena neriifolia re-growing

We reported on this stand of Agapanthus, presumably the rare A. walshii in an area where we had not found them before. My count went past 50 individual plants!

More than 50 Agapanthus probably A. walshii in one place

When we did see colour, it stood out! This Tritoniopsis lata would have been difficult to miss!

Tritoniopsis lata

The Pelargoniums are coming back strongly, we know where they were best before.

Pelargonium

Outside the railway cottage ruins is a stump with impressive Cinnabar Brackets Pycnoporus sanguineus.

Cinnabar Brackets Pycnoporus sanguineus

Also there, it's difficult to go past the Prickly Pear Opuntia and not look at the flowers!

Prickly Pear Opuntia flower

Back on the farm this Daisy begged to be photographed:

Unknown Daisy flower

From the side:

Same Daisy from the side

.... and the leaves. Which one is it?

Whole plant including leaves, what is it?

Also at home was this Bolete (?):

Is this a Bolete? 

From underneath, still to be identified.

From underneath

:-) A