After all last week's hype over Spring being here, we had a windy, wet, very cold week, but it's cleared now and the promises are for fine weather this week, so with the Apples beginning to move, from tomorrow the spray machines will be out in earnest! A Sundowner bud below, just beginning to show some green!
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Malus domestica Sundowner bud |
We were Milling at Compagnesdrift yesterday and the succulent garden below the Mill Stream is at its best. Is this Aloe reynoldsii?
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Aloe reynoldsii? |
Flower detail:
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Flower detail Aloe reynoldsii ? |
Is this Cotyledon pendens?
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Cotyledon pendens ? |
Flower detail:
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Flower detail of Cotyledon pendens ? |
The Chasmanthes aren't over yet!
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Chasmanthe |
There was a strong smell from the Lobster Plant Plectranthus neochilus planted in a wide band next to the stream as it flows down past the Mill:
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Plectranthus neochilus |
Today we had a peek at the stunning Clivias in Steen's garden on the way out:
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Clivia miniata |
Down at the dam on the Experimental Farm, the Waterblommetjies Aponogeton distachyos are all vying for space in the sun!
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Waterblommetjies Apongeton distachyos |
This unfortunate Daisy flower was overwhelmed by Monkey Beetles!
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Daisy covered in Monkey Beetles |
This poor photo is of New Flower No 1, an Erica, close to the road we always use but we have never noticed it before. The leaves are quite long and not tufted, the flowers were pink, so which one is it? Erica plukenetii?
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Erica plukenetii ? |
We think we now have a name for the plant I have described before as having Cedar-like stems and Brunia-type round white flowers. Raspalia microphylla seems to fit the description; there's an iSpot submission from our area. It is of the Brunia family, and its common name is False Cedar! We're finding more and more of it.
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Raspalia microphylla ? |
The next 'new' plant was growing close to the Erica above, it has long oval-section leaves, growing about 30cm long straight out of the ground. What makes it interesting now are the branched deep red / brown flower stems which are also growing out of the ground. A branched stem can be seen growing out to the right in the picture below:
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Unknown plant |
Bud detail, before branching out:
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Flower detail |
Some of the flower stems were particularly thick, like this one below, others had branched out candelabra-style. We found three plants in a small area and no more. What might they be? We'll be back to see what the flowers look like!
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Flower stem detail |
Only a few Wachendorfia paniculata are out, but there are many plants waiting!
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Wachendorfia paniculata |
A third 'new' plant has hairy leaves and tiny pink flowers, the plant growing close to the ground. It has us guessing! How does one describe what is growing behind the flower?
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Unknown plant flower detail |
This is how the plant grows:
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Unknown plant growing pattern |
From the top it was good to see an Optimist out on the water, close to the Country Club!
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Optimist on Eikenhof Dam |
Here's an interesting Restio, short, with the sun catching the yellow of the flowers! The photo isn't detailed enough for Anina to identify it, but it was striking!
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Unknown Restio |
Another pair with culms which looked like porcupine quills!
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Elegia deustum ? |
Anina says this is possibly Elegia deustum.
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Elegia deustum ? |
We haven't seen a Sunbird in this particular spot before, here seen holding on to a Ceratocaryum argenteum male flower:
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Sunbird on Ceratocaryum argenteum male |
White flowers make this an Oftia:
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White buds on Oftia |
... and this with pink flowers, a Teedia! For the rest of the year, we can't tell them apart!
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Pink flowers on Teedia |
Our fourth 'new' plant was growing right next to the track, two lilac flowers on an otherwise bare, but branched stem:
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Gladiolus blommesteinii ? |
The closest we get is Gladiolus blommesteinii, but we're far from sure!
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Gladiolus blommesteinii ? |
This is how far advanced the flowers are on the original single Phaenocoma prolifera which we found a couple of years ago, and as the name suggests, it's covered in them!
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Phaenocoma prolifera |
We stopped at the China Flowers Adenandra uniflora we saw last week, to verify the green petals (?) in the middle. What we found is that when the four petals are fully open, the last five leaves (or are they sepals?) on the stem are exposed:
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Adenandra uniflora |
We wondered what had happened to all the ladybirds we found in the hollows in the rock a few weeks back:
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Ladybird on spent Erica |
This was close to the Penaea cneorum our 'new' flower of last week, now looking slightly redder at the base of the flowers:
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Penaea cneorum ? |
On the way home I just had to stop for this shot of a bright pink Erica. The dam was like a mirror!
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Pink Erica and reflection |
:-) A
