Dilatris pillansii Sunday Flower Walk

We found this Dilatris pillansii in a place which had not been burnt, but near a burnt area. We have never seen it here before, right next to one of the 'red roads' so we would surely have seen them in the past. Maybe some of the thousands of substances which we are told are to be found in Fynbos smoke have caused them to burst into flower?

Dilatris pillansii

Flower detail (there's a strong northwester blowing):

Flower detail

Flowers up close? This is the best week for Dorothy Perkins roses! These are in our driveway:

Dorothy Perkins roses

The Salsify Tragopogon which popped up in a pot in our garden is interesting to watch. This morning, two of the flowers decided to open, just for a few hours. Late morning, they closed again, despite being in full sun. I didn't notice any bird or insect activity.

Salsify Tragopogon flower

Just these two opened today, others will choose their time!

Only two flowers were open

We'll be watching for when those two re-open as seed heads!

Back to our walk, the Prickly Pear Opuntia at the Railway cottage ruins seems set for a bumper crop of flowers and fruit!

Prickly Pear Opuntia with many buds!

Close by, I had to hold the stem of this Helichrysum foetida to hold it in the wind, and I'm regretting it, I just can't get the smell off my hands! The whole area here has a very 'dead' smell at some times of the year.

Helichrysum foetida

This little blue flower..........

Could this be a kind of Borage?

.... turns into a seed pod like this:

Spent flowers

The Ericas in the burnt areas seem to be the last to recover, but this was in an unburnt area, and it reminded us how much colour they normally give the veld. This is Many Umbrellas, E. multumbellifera, and we've never seen it flower like this before!

Many Umbrellas Erica multumbellifera

Flowers up close:

Flowers up close

It's Pea flower time of year, so it's no surprise to see Psoralea pinnata looking its best!

Psoralea pinnata

Another Pea, Bolusafra bitumenosa or Tar Pea. We found lots more, not flowering yet, though.

Tar Pea Bolusafra bitumenosa

We have really missed the flowering of the Aristea africanus, these flowers are spent.

Aristea africanus with spent flowers

Some white Helichrysums are now open!

Helichrysums, open at last!

Lobelia jasionoides seems to thrive on the barren rocky hilltops:

Lobelia jasionoides

We are now fairly sure that this is Pseudoselago spuria. Now we have the name, they have passed their prime. There are areas particularly of burnt veld where the ground is carpeted with these!

Pseudoselago spuria

While they are getting less spectacular, the purple ones Pseudoselago serrata are just starting to flower, and there are many of them too!

Pseudoselago serrata, just coming into bloom

Flower detail, Purple Powder Puff:

Purple Powder Puff Pseudoselago serrata flowers

In another place we were disappointed to find that new growth at the bases of Protea cynaroides has withered. There seem to be spots of white fungus growing on the burnt wood.

Withered re-growth at the base of yet another Protea cynaroides

Despite marking the place last week, we had difficulty finding this which we have since identified as a fern called Cockscomb or Curlygrass Schizaea pectinata:

Curlyleaf, Cockscomb fern Schizaea pectinata

We needn't have bothered searching, because on the way down we found several more examples! Here are the 'croziers' which give it one of its names!

Croziers on Schizaea pectinata

We found lost more of these spready little pink pea flowers which we haven't pinned down yet.

Unidentified pink Pea

Here is the very first Agapanthus walshii we have found to be opening. We live in hope of finding a white example, but so far they have all been blue.

First Agapanthus walshii to open!

We're going to have to wait longer for these taller ones to open!

More to come!

The Sour Figs Carpobrotus edulis were hit badly by the fire, but we're finding them all over, first a couple of fleshy leaves, then four, and more. This one is the best developed one we have found so far.

Sour Figs Carpobrotus edulis recovering nine months after the fire

This is the spent remains of the single Orchid we've been watching for months. Maybe there will be more here next year?

The remains of our single Orchid

It was early evening by the time we came down, one advantage being that the Bobartia filiformis were nicely open!

Bobartia filiformis flower

And the late sun picked this Wachendorfia's candelabra of seed pods nicely:

Wachendorfia in the late afternoon sun

:-) A

Fire Asparagus Sunday Flower Walk

It is now 4½ weeks since the fire and we were today discussing the plants which have recovered, in order of their appearance.

Within days the Fire Lilies Cyrtanthus ventricosa were up, and at the same time the green shoots of Lanaria lanata were pushing up their burned ends. Various grasses were quick to follow. We were happy to see the Agapanthus walshii shooting from burned stumps. Then we found the Fire Asparagus Asparagus lignosus and it's all over! Recognisable by the dense light green splash it makes on the burned background, it's standing out and the earliest are now in flower:

Asparagus lignosus flowers and leaves

The flowers are tiny, the leaves firm, almost like short pine-needles and the thorns in the axils needle sharp!

Asparagus lignosus branch

What is surprising is that it seems to have been there all the time and we've never noticed them! Look at the base of this one; there are plenty of burned-off stems. The 'woodiness' of the name 'lignosus' is apparent here:

Base of Asparagus lignosus plant showing burned-off stems

This is what the whole plant looks like in the bleak landscape:

Asparagus lignosus plant

I mentioned the Agapanthus walshii, we have been watching them for years now and know where to find them. But what is very satisfying is to see others in their vicinity now shooting, which we were unaware of.

Agapanthus walshii

They are very rare; in SANBI's Red List, they are EN B1ab(ii,iii); C1

"Known from a restricted range (35 km²) in the Elgin valley, recorded from less than five locations with continuing decline of the largest subpopulation occurring as a result of informal settlement expansion." It's pleasing to know that they will have survived the fire. It took some looking to find a bunch we have been keeping an eye on for years. We knew where to look and knew that it should be sprouting. The fire must have been very 'hot' there, but today we found it and packed stones around to make it easier it find in future. There were five flowers on it when the fire came through, including one which we had put a stocking over, to catch a few seeds. Agapanthus walshii, an old stand, recovering Elsewhere, they're thriving! More Agapanthus walshii The Pelargoniums are recovering fast in places, some straight out of the ground: Pelargonium out of the ground ..... and some from the bases of burned bushes: Pelargonium recovering from the base of a burned bush This shows the stage that Lanaria lanata has reached so far, this one recognisable by the remains of flowers:

Lanaria lanata with the remains of flowers

All over, the Palmiet is pushing out green shoots, not only from the burned stems, but from the base too:

Palmiet, shooting

So far this is the only Fire Lily Cyrtanthus ventricosa we have found which has set seed. The leaves are showing, but from our observations, they don't get much bigger than this:

Fire Lily Cyrtanthus ventricosa with seed pod

One side of the pod is open, we're not sure whether it has been eaten or that it's beginning to split open to distribute seeds.

Seed pod of Fire Lily Cyrtanthius ventricosa

To give an idea of how 'hot' the fire was and how deep it burned, this dog lead is 1.2 metres long and its clip is just touching the bottom of the hole left from a pine root! If that plant on top survives, it's hardy!

Root of pine burned to a depth of more than one metre!

Here, Lanaria lanata is giving the otherwise bleak background a green hue:

Lanaria lanata greening the bleak background!

It made a change to get back into the unburned section and to find old favourites like this White Water Alder Brachylaena neriifolia, still in flower, as the others would be!

White Water Alder Brachylaena neriifolia in flower

.... and our old favourite, the Many Umbrellas Heath Erica multumbellifera:

Many Umbrellas Heath Erica multumbellifera

This is how it grows, many of the flowers are spent:

Erica multumbellifera plant

At the dam on the Experimental Farm next door, we were treated to the sight of six Spoonbills. We seldom see more than one at a time. Here they are amongst Sacred Ibis, Blacksmith Plovers (oops! Lapwings) and a Darter:

Six Spoonbills amongst Sacred Ibis, Lapwings and a Darter

We watched the large flock of Sacred Ibis land, then just four Hadeda Ibis took off from the bank of the dam on the left with their raucous calls, causing all the birds on the island to fly away, the Spoonbills keeping to themselves in flight, and returning first. What made the Hadeda's fly off? Not sure, but looking up we saw a Fish Eagle circling! Quite a performance for us in a minute or so!

:-) A

Leucospermum oleifolium Sunday Flower Walk

There's that dragonfly again! He just can't seem to open the flower!

                                       Dragonfly on Nymphaea nouchali

That's better! Nymphaea nouchali.

Nymphaea nouchali

High and dry! A Willow with roots exposed, showing how far the dam level has dropped.

Willow roots

These Lobelia tomentosa (?) seem to flower throughout the year, but they are particularly striking now!

Lobelia tomentosa

Whatever these shrubs / trees are, they are in full flower now:

Unknown shrub/tree

Flower detail:

Flower detail

Patches of pale yellow in the veld come from these which I think is Stoebe plumosa, Seriphium plumosum or slangbos, not popular with cattle farmers!

Stoebe plumosa/Seriphium plumosum

Another look at the tall Erica, watching the flowers develop:

Unknown Erica

It's the only one quite like this that we've found, and it seems to be different from the 'popular' ones.

Unknown Erica, whole plant

... for instance this Erica longifolia, growing not far away:

Erica longifolia

From this Erica, I went one way to look at this shrub:

Unknown shrub, Rhus/Searsia? 

Leaf and flower (bud?) detail, could it be a Rhus, Searsia? 

Detail of leaf and flower/bud

But Pippa called me over to look at what she'd found!

Leucospermum oleifolium

Overberg pincushion, Leucospermum oleifolium. We have been watching a weak specimen next to the cycle track for years, but this one puts it to shame!

Flower, spent flower and growth

Flower detail:

Flower detail

The last of this year's Pelargoniums?

Pelargonium

And the last of the Watsonia schlechteri?

Watsonia schlechteri

We haven't pinned this Daisy down yet, with its distinctive spent flowers:

Unknown Daisy

Underside of the flower:

Flower detail

These Ericas give the whole veld a mauve hue in places:

Mauve Ericas

Pagoda Flower, Mimetes cucullatus:

Mimetes cucullatus

It was a great joy to see these flowering together! After the clearing of the forest several months ago, these were completely smothered in cut branches which we pulled off. Liparia splendens and Agapanthus walshii:

Liparia splendens and Agapanthus walshii

:-)

Liparia splendens flower

Nearly home and we found the Many Umbrellas Heath Erica multumbellifera in full flower!

Erica multumbellifera

... and this pea-type, could it be Aspalathus psoraleodes?

Unknown Pea-type

:-) A