Semper Aliquid Novi Sunday Flower Walk

Always something new! Today was no exception. In fact, we have more questions than answers!

Snow on the high peaks!

But first, back to yesterday, going over to Franschhoek in my old Austin Lorry I was compelled to stop on the Pass by a brightly coloured flower on the side of the road.

Muraltia heisteria on Franschhoek Pass

Only when it was in the viewfinder did I recognise the flower itself as a Muraltia. However, this one grows differently from the single example we have found on our walks. Here the flower is more prominent and the plant more scraggly. It has us guessing whether we're correct with the identity of 'our' one as M. heisteria. The one on the Pass looks like that on the Fernkloof  website as M. heisteria. There's a M. stokoei and a M. bolusii which is listed as 'endangered'. There were many of these on the Pass!

Growing pattern, Muraltia heisteria

The rainwater channel had many Drosera growing in it, with buds almost ready to open, but my photos didn't come out. These are from today on our walk:

Sundew Drosera

Last week, on the way home on the Experimental Farm next door, we spotted a white Erica. It was difficult to get to, so this week we cut through the brambles and clambered across a ditch to get up close:

Erica lutea or E. daphniflora?

We think it might be Erica lutea, but it might also be a white version of E. daphniflora. In the pictures on the web and in the books, the leaves aren't shown very well. I bent this branch down to show what these look like:

Erica lutea or E. daphniflora?

We found the single purple bulb we spotted last week and Pippa held the stem to show what the whole plant looks like. It was growing in and held up by a tuft of grass:

Geissorhiza aspera?

Flower and bud detail, what is it? Geissorhiza aspera?

Geissorhiza aspera flower detail?

Close by was something else, a white bulb

White flower bulb, Hesperantha?

Flower detail, possibly a Hesperantha?

Flower detail, Hesperantha (?)

Another one, with flower not fully open:

Opening flower, Hesperantha (?)

We were disappointed to find this Skaapsteker dead in the road, apparently driven over:

Skaapsteker Psammophylax rhombeatus dead

Psammophylax rhombeatus (Spotted skaapsteker, Rhombic skaapsteker, Spotted grass snake). A few hundred metres away, we found one very much alive. More scared of me than I was of it. We just had to keep the dogs away:

Skaapsteker Psammophylax rhombeatus alive!

The Wachendorfias lower down are flowering and in some cases have spent flowers and the beginning of their characteristic turban-shaped seed pods forming, yet a few hundred metres further up the hill, hardly a bud is coming up!

Wachendorfia paniculata

This grey-green furry-leafed plant had no flowers last week. Now some of the bright yellow pea-type flowers are out:

Liparia vestita?

There are plenty of buds to open still. The closest we get to identifying it is Liparia vestita:

Liparia vestita?

These Everlastings Helichrysum which had pink buds last week are now more open and snow-white:

Everlasting Helichrysum

Here's a 'new' one! The centre flowers are open, surrounded by buds-in-waiting!

Unknown flower and buds

This is how the plant grows:

Unknown plant and flowers

Detail of the sparse leaves. What could it be?

Unknown flower head

The wonders of Nature! How can this Daisy (Euryops?) survive and thrive in this crack in a rock?

Daisy Euryops (?) in crack in rock!

Where before we had one flower per plant open, for many weeks, they're in full bloom now!

Daisy Euryops (?) in road

We had some difficulty finding our single example of what we think is Erica longifolia. The Daisy plants are getting thicker and taller around it.

Erica longifolia (?)

Then I spotted another 'new' plant!

What is this plant?

Flower detail. The petals look papery, and the leaves reminded me of chameleon paws in shape and texture. What might it be?

Flower detail

These flowers look white but are pink, so that should make them Teedias

Teedia with flowers

Here and there a Pelargonium flower is out.

Pelargonium flower

We have been seeing these Gladiolus debilis for a few weeks now. This one is growing in a stand of large Restios:

Gladiolus debilis flower

In one area there is a sea of China Flowers Adenandra uniflora. There are still many buds waiting!

Adenandras!

Flower detail:

Adenandra uniflora flower

Something else 'new'! I found myself almost standing on this plant, covered in buds. Leaves are sparse, short and close to the stem and the flower clusters are at the ends of each branch:

Unknown plant and flowers

Some of the buds are opening as white flowers

Flower / bud detail

Branching detail of flowers

Always worth a detour into the veld, Saltera sarcocolla:

Saltera sarcocolla

The strange plant growing out of corms again, which never seems to do anything! Maybe we'll get a pleasant surprise yet!

Unknown plant growing from corms

This picture shows the size of the Lobelia tomentosa flowers which colour the veld throughout the year, it seems!

Lobelia tomentosa

Finally, this episode is dedicated to Gay Prevôst who passed away in this last week. She was an avid follower of these reports and had opened files for the different plants. We shall miss her!

Andy

Follow-up Sunday Flower Walk and More!

Before we get to wild flowers, just a picture of the magnificent Clivias next to Jayne's house on Compagnesdrift:

Clivias at Compagnesdrift

On the way there, on Houw Hoek Pass I stopped for this pink Watsonia growing next to the road. It looks a bit pale and a month early for W. borbonica, could it be W. laccata?:

Watsonia laccata (?) on Houw Hoek Pass

In the horse paddock next door, possibly Moraea flaccida:

Moraea flaccida ?

On the track above the railway line, these Sundews, Drosera have pushed up buds:

Sundew Drosera with buds

The Wachendorfia paniculata are taking their time to come out. This flower was close to the base if the candelabra.

Wachendorfia paniculata flower

We looked for one of the 'new' plants from last week, and were delighted to find some flowers are open! Only one per stem at this stage, with the most delicate flowers with petals folding all the way back until they touch the stem!

Drimia or Caesia (?) flower

The multi-branched flower stem can be seen below growing out of the ground to the left of the bunch of leaves which are round on one side and flatter on the other. Now tuned in to them, we saw several more, but only in that patch, nowhere else on our walk!

Drimia or Caesia (?) plant

Drimia or Caesia (?) flower stem

Possibly a Drimia? Or a Caesia?

Drimia or Caesia (?) with petals curved right back to touch the stem

Most of the Teedias are in flower now:

Teedia in flower

We keep checking this single tall Erica which we have so far not been able to identify. It's growing well, but no sign of flowers yet!

Unknown Erica, waiting for flowers!

We searched out another of last week's 'new' plants, a pea-type from the flower, with tiny pink blooms. Pippa is inspecting the tiny flowers with a magnifying glass:

Pippa inspecting pea-type flower with magnifying glass

So did I!

Pea-type flower through magnifying glass

Actually it was easier taking a photo without! The very hairy leaves are clear below, and the other hairy clusters between the flowers seem to be flower buds. We found another plant about ten metres away and noted its position too.

Pea-type flower and hairy leaves and buds

Not far away we found some examples of this which may be a Gladiolus debelis, the wider three rear petals and the smaller three inside. Only three, two wide and one narrow, have the red spear-heads!

Gladiolus debelis ? flower detail

Gladiolus debelis ? flower detail

On another plant a short distance away, the middle arrow-head is not as pronounced.

A pair of Gladiolus debelis ? with different markings

The flower stalks have leaves along their length, and the flowers at the tips, these were about 40cm tall. Pippa is taking notes and making sketches while I take photos!

Gladiolus debelis ? plant detail

I looked around and thought I'd spotted another, but it was different! Only about 20cm tall:

Unknown bulbous plant

Also with three-plus-three petals, but a very different flower otherwise:

Unknown bulbous plant flower

The back of the petals have a central stripe and a reddish tinge. It also has us guessing, Strumeria? Hesperantha? Spiloxene? Ixia? The petals are too narrow for a Cyanella.

Unknown bulbous plant, rear of flower

Unknown bulbous plant, detail of stamens

We were close to the hollows in the rock where we found the Ladybirds. As expected, they'd all flown! There are still flowers on the Tar Pea Bolusafra bitumenosa:

Tar Pea Bolusafra bitumenosa

Some tiny red flowers on a small bush caught my eye (and the strong Northwester!):

Unknown plant with small red flowers

I didn't have much success focusing on the tiny flowers with trumpet looking anthers (?), and we have no idea what it is!

Flower detail of unknown plant

This pink Metalasia looked familiar to me but not Pippa; the reason being that I spotted one while working at Karweyderskraal in the week before my report of 20th July. That one looked like Metalasia erubescens, the foliage on this one is more sparse, perhaps it's an M. fastigiata?

Metalasia fastigiata ?

The 'ordinary' Brunias are looking spectacular! This one had been cut back by flower-sellers.

Brunia in full bloom

Now we know this is also a Brunia, it's not surprising that it's in full flower too! False Cedar Brunia microphylla:

False Cedar Brunia microphylla

Flower detail:

False Cedar Brunia microphylla flowers

We walked back past this strange plant we've seen growing from corms in the middle of the track. It doesn't seem to have changed much.

Unknown plant

Close by was another, growing straight out of the ground:

Another similar unknown plant

Is this another, a metre or so away and more advanced?

Is this the same, more advanced?

That's my finger in the corner of the picture, the plants are tiny!

:-) A