South Africa 5. Into the Karoo

Rainfall is sparse in the Karoo, but that means
fewer large shrubs and more space for spring
wildflowers.

At the end of our tour of the southern coast of South Africa, we turned inland, into the area known as the Karoo.  There is the lesser Karoo first, then further north the Great Karroo. The climate becomes increasingly arid as we move north.  Nevertheless this region is richly endowed with wildflowers that pop up within weeks of the winter rain.

Tourists can get close and personal with ostriches in
Oudtshoorn.

Ostrich chicks recently hatched in the
incubator.

This a region of wide open spaces is the beginning of the range of many iconic African animals, and our excursion made a stop at an Ostrich farm near Oudtshoorn.  Elsewhere we saw baboons foraging along the road.

The habitats here are diverse.  There are mountains and plains, and wet spots in seeps and streambeds, so room for a great variety of plants.

A species of the genus Babiana, probably either B. hypogea
or B. sambucina,  near Cango Caves.

Aptosimum procumbens is a creeping

 plant of the snapdragon family,

with spectacular blue-purple blossoms.

Aptosimum indivisum has a more compact growth form.

A species of Felicia in the sunflower family. The flowers of
many species in this genus are blue to violet, adding a
distinctive splash of color to the spring landscape.

In moist meadows, particularly in coastal
areas one can find many wild gladioli.
This appears to be Gladiolus liliaceus.

Aspalathus is a genus in the legume family, and the source

of rooibos tea.

A shrubby, succulent species of the huge African genus Euphorbia.  this appears 

to be E. burmannia or possibly E. mauritanica 

One of many species of Erica occurs in the foothills along
the south side of the Little Karoo.

Moraea polystachya, a member of the
Iris family, pokes up among shrubs.

Rhizogum obovatum is a spectacular flowering shrub 
in the Karoo.

Melianthus comosus grows along streams.

Oxalis obtusa pokes up from under a shrub.
Known as a weed in the U.S., and occasionally
mistaken for clover or the Irish shamrock, this
genus has many beautiful species native to
South Africa.

A bewildering array of yellow-flowered members
of the Asteraceae fill the open spaces of South
Africa in the spring.  This appears to be Gazania krebsiana.

A group of tiny red sundews have sprouted up in a moist spot.

A great variety of species belonging to the
succulent family Mesembryanthaceae add to the brilliance of
the spring flora.

Erica cubica has interesting, bicolored
flowers.

Aloe variegata is a compact triangular plant with
variegated leaves.

The dry karoo becomes a lush garden in the spring, with color here provided by
several species of Erica, and an accent in the back by a large sedge.

South Africa 4. The Incredible Pelargoniums

Pelargonium incrassatum provides brilliant
color in the northern Namaqualand region of 
South Africa.  Notice the characteristic 
stork's-bill fruits developing in this specimen.

 Pelargoniums are extremely popular garden and pot flowers around the world. They are planted in the cool season in Florida, and in the summer in the north.  They are often mistakenly called Geraniums, stemming from the fact that they were once in the same genus. You saw the difference in Part 3 of this series.  Geraniums, mostly dark blue or purple in South Africa, are radially symmetrical (petals all the same size and shape), while Pelargoniums are mostly bilaterally symmetrical, with an upper group of petals different from a lower group.

In any case, the genus Pelargonium has exploded in southern Africa, with over 200 species.  Only a few species occur elsewhere,including some in Australia and southwestern Asia. Most of the cultivated Pelargoniums are derived from just a few wild ancestors, and the other species are rarely seen in Amerian or European gardens.  So a trip to Sourh Africa in the springtime can be a real eye-opener.

Pelargonium peltatum is the source of cultivated "Ivy geraniums," which are neither ivy nor
geraniums.  This  vining species is commonly found growing among shrubs in coastal areas.

The diversity of flower form and color in Pelargonium reflects a spectacular array of pollination mechanisms, including much convergence (Struck & van der Walt, 1996).  This makes the classification and identification of species difficult.  The species also show a wide range of habitat preferences and include shrubs, vines, geophytes (bulb-like perennials), and spiny xerophytes (adapted to arid climates), with every imaginable form of leaf.  I have taken a stab at identifying the many species I saw in South Africa, but have only been partially successful. So I appeal to any South African readers to provide any assistance they can.

Several species have already been pictured in my previous posts, including the bright red Pelargonium fulgidum, and the common P. cordifolium. Here are a number of additional species, some identified and some not.

Pelargonium echinatum i a succulent species, with  bright magenta flowers with distinctive darker blotches on the petals, though apparently a white form is more common. The flowers of this species are nearly radially symmetrical, but like most members of the genus the upper two are larger, and the blotches of a different shape.

This appears to be a form of Pelargonium triste,  a geophyte with
a basal cluster of compound leaves
and a long stalk bearing an umbel of flowers.

Pelargonium crithmifolium has deeply divided
leaves

Pelargonium zonale, with familiar roundih, scalloped
leaves, is an ancestor of  the most common cultivars
(along with P. inquinans, P. scandens, and P. frutetorum).

An unidentified shrubby Pelargonium in the dry north
has managed to squeeze out a pair of flowers.

Pelargonium capitatum is a fragrant species,
and one of the commercial sources of
pelargonium or geranium oil.

An unidentified species from the west coast has odd leaves consisting of a
small, spade-shaped blade at the end of a very long petiole.

An unidentified species with small, reddish leaves,
 from the dry north along the west coast.

Pelargonium spinosum is a resident of the inland desert region of South Africa.
It drops its small leaves during the dry season and behaves like a cactus.

References: 

Key, Hazel, 2000. 1001 Pelargoniums. B. T. Batsford. London.

Webb, William J. 1984. The Pelargonium family: the species of Pelargonium, Monsonia, and Sarcoculon. Croom Helm, Dover, NH.

Struck & van der Walt, 1996, in van der Maesen, L. J. G. et al., The biodiversity of African Plants. pp. 631-638. Kluwer Academic Publishers. Springer Netherlands.

South Africa 3. Along the South Coast

Here I continue my explorations of the South Africa springtime flora. The organizers of the 1998

A seaside cliff, with and Mesembryanthemum

International Botanic Gardens Conservation Congress, which was held at Kirstenbosch Botanic Gardens in Capetown, arranged for several excellent field trips before and after the meetings, and I was an eager participant. The first took us eastward through the coastal fynbos.  Fynbos is the Afrikaaner term for Mediterranean scrub, what we would call chaparral in California. The vegetation is mostly shrubby, but quite varied, as rainfall varies with topography and distance from the coast.  It is an incredibly rich vegetation, even though drought conditions prevail for more than half the year.  Winter rainfall brings the semi-dormant vegetation to life, and flowering amongst the herbs and shrubs reaches its peak in in the spring months of September and October.  This is the home of the many species of Proteaceae featured in Part 2 of this series.  Here we will explore some of the other characteristic genera.

A resident of California or the Mediterranean would feel quite at home driving up to a coastal cliff, for many of the cultivated plants in these regions come from South Africa, including the ubiquitous ice plant.  Here though we face out to Anarctica, though safely removed from it enough to enjoy a pleasant subtropical climate.

Storm clouds gather off of the south coast.

Isolated from other similar vegetation by thousands of miles, the South African flora contains many unique species, and a number of genera that have exploded into hundreds of species here.  Erica is a genus of heathers, for which the blueberry family takes its name.  There are 860 species altogether, but of these 660 occur in South Africa.  heathers are smallish evergreen shrubs, with needle-like leaves and flowers shaped like bells, trumpets and tubes, and ranging in color from red to pink, white and yellow.

Erica regia

An unidentified white Erica.

Erica oblongiflora

Erica mammosa

Another locally mind-boggling genus is Pelargonium, in the Geraniaceae.  Of the 200 species in the genus, most are native to South Africa.  The others are widely scattered in isolated corners of the old world.  Aloes represent another major genus, with 500 species in southern and eastern Africa, Madagascar and the Arabic Peninsula. There are also an abundance of legumes, composites (Asteraceae), Mesembryanthaceae, and Oxalidaceae.  We will see in future installments families that have diversified in drier parts of the country: the Iridaceae, Asclepiadaceae, and the Euphorbiaceae.

Pelargonium fulgidum

Pelargonium cordatum

A brilliant red Pelargonium, apparently a variant or close relative of P. fulgidum.

True Geraniums are quite different from Pelargonium, though in the same family.  Here is
Geranium incanum

Oxalis purpurea

Oxalis pes-caprae

No, this picture is not in sideways.  These are the
massive branches of a giant Outeniqua yellowwood
tree (Podocarpus falcatus) in the Tsitsikamma
Forest. Hanging from the branches is a lichen
reminiscent of the Spanish moss in Florida.

As we traveled along the coast, stopping for numerous wildflower photoshoots, we gradually encountered lusher vegetation. Were stunned, however, as the road descended into a lush forest with massive Podocarpus trees and tree ferns east of the city of George.   We were in the Garden Route National Park in the Tsitsikamma forest, which has all the markings of a temperate rain forest. To the east of this point the rainfall is mainly in the summer, as is true up the east coast of Africa and in the savannas to the north.  Here in Tsitsikamma the winter rainfall patterns of the southwest overlap with the summer rains of the east, and the result is this unexpected verdant forest.

As is my custom, I will forgo further words, and allow the photographs to continue with the story. I have not identified all of these, and some of my identifications may prove to be wrong.  I welcome any corrections!

Aloe arborescens.

Aloe ferox

Aloe ciliaris, the "climbing aloe," is unusual
for its elongate, rambling stems.

A calla lily (Zantedeschia) finds a moist niche at the base of a coastal cliff.

Dimorphotheca nudicaulis is one of many species of the Asteraceae found
only in South Africa.

An unidentified member of the Hibiscus Family
(Malvaceae)

Cotyledon orbiculata (Crassulaceae) is a common sight in the fynbos.

This colorful member of the legume family
(Fabaceae) appears to be a species of Indigofera.

Muraltia heisteria resembles a legume but is in
the Polygalacaeae.

Sutherlandia montana is a colorful legume of the fynbos.

The flowers of Drosera aliciae arise from typical sundew rosettes (above right).

Drosera cistiflora has long, upright stems.

Anisodonta cabrosis a showy member of the Hibiscus family (Malvaceae).

A white-flowered member of the genus
Nemesia, in the Snapdragon family

Tritoniopsis caffra pokes up above the
fynbos  vegetation.  It is a member of the
Iridaceae, about which we'll hear
a great deal more in the next  installment.

A pink-flowered Nemesia

Erica versicolor

Berzelia abrotonoides (Bruniaceae) is a
shrub with dense clusters of small
flowers

An orange-flowered Oxalis, probably a
form of O. massoniana

The southern coast of South Africa is probably what much of coastal California looked like many years ago.