One of the growth forms of our woody plants are as underground trees – ‘trees’ whose closest sister species are normal trees, but whose woody mass is all subterranean. These plants typically flower and fruit within one season after fire but never develop an above-ground trunk. We have 10 species of underground tree on Buffelskloof,…
Category: Botany
Botany, also called plant science(s), plant biology or phytology, is the science of plant life and a branch of biology. A botanist, plant scientist or phytologist is a scientist who specialises in this field. The term “botany” comes from the Ancient Greek word βοτάνη (botanē) meaning “pasture”, “grass”, or “fodder”; βοτάνη is in turn derived from βόσκειν (boskein), “to feed” or “to graze”.Traditionally, botany has also included the study of fungi and algae by mycologists and phycologists respectively, with the study of these three groups of organisms remaining within the sphere of interest of the International Botanical Congress. Nowadays, botanists (in the strict sense) study approximately 410,000 species of land plants of which some 391,000 species are vascular plants (including ca 369,000 species of flowering plants),and ca 20,000 are bryophytes.
Flowers before leaves
August is traditionally one of the dreariest months of the year on the Highveld. The recently burnt veld has not yet started its spring flower show. So here are four trees that push out their flowers in a pre-spring display, with red predominating, and keeping the sunbirds happy! Transvaal Bottlebrush (Greyia radlkoferi, Greyiaceae) provides bright…
A and B – Asparagus and Berkheya
Prof. Eileen Campbell from Nelson Mandela Metropolitan University, Port Elizabeth, arrived at Buffelskloof at the beginning of July with a suitcase full of Asparagus specimens from the University Herbarium (PEU) and spent a few days tapping the vast knowledge and understanding of the genus that Sandie and John have accumulated over the years. John and Sandie were able…
Forest Ferns
While the veld in winter is brown and largely lifeless, the moist forests still have many ferns that are unaffected by the cold. The widespread Maidenhair Fern (Adiantum poiretii). The Black Spleenwort (Asplenium monanthes)
Plant Specialist Group – May 2019
Plant Specialist Group Winter Workshop. This is a regular slot in the Buffelskloof calendar and it was attended by 26 botanical enthusiasts from Mpumalanga and Limpopo. The talks ranged from a tribute to the wondrous genus Babiana in the Cape to the malvaceous plants of the Kruger Park. In recent years, a practical session, either…
Flowers: a magnified look
Euryops pedunculatus (Daisy family) – standing nearly 2 m tall in shaley grassland, was quite a spectacle against the stormy SW skies. Clematis brachiata (Traveller’s Joy) Lobelia vanreenensis, one of the less common Lobelia species at Buffelskloof, is found in damp soils. Alepidea peduncularis (Carrot family) ± 40 cm tall, is quite a common sight…
Stripes and Size count
Craterostigma wilmsii (Scrophulariaceae) Mole’s Spectacles. This diminutive plant is fairly common on Buffelskloof, occupying shallow seasonally wet soils over sheetrock. It’s a true resurrection plant that shrivels up and becomes dormant in the dry season and then, overnight, regains its normal green state after a shower of rain. This is the main plant that…
Late Winter
Late winter is traditionally Buddleja time, a genus of which we have three species occurring naturally Buddleja salviifolia (top left), a woody shrub to ± 2 m high, is common in disturbed areas and along streams on BNR . Always noticeable with its sweet scent, the flowers range from deep mauve to a rare, dirty…