South African Summer Flowers

I love the local flora of South Africa. We have diverse and attractive flowers that are hardy and grow in a variety of environments. Every now and then, when I am overwhelmed by a frenzied urge for Pointlessism, I'll take the camera out into the garden, snapping pictures of flowers. These are some of my favorite indigenous South African plants.

Above: Yellow daisies. These grow wild in the farmlands around Cape Town, and flower from early spring through to the first truly hot day of summer.

Above: South Africa is home to hundreds of varieties of daisy flowers, that appear in a wide variety of colors. This purple daisy is a popular addition to Cape Town gardens. 

Above: The flowers on the left are not from an aloe, but share many similarities to the 'red hot poker' aloe flower.

Above: One of our most famous South African plants, the Strelitzia. These shoot out a handful of seeds as they open, and are reminiscent of birds with their yellow 'plumage' and red 'beaks'.

A Non-Local Indigenous Plant?

When drought hit last summer, I rescued/liberated/swiped a few cuttings from some thirsty succulent plants that were growing near a driveway in the wine lands outside Cape Town. I popped the cuttings in a pot with some soil, watered them and did what most succulent growers do at this point - I let them be.

A few months on, the cuttings are thriving, especially the one pictured below. I've identified it as Aeonium Arboreum, and there appears to be some dispute as to this plant's origins.

Above: Aeonium Arboreum. The cutting has trebled in size in six months. It's not as tough as the majority of our drought- and sun-loving local succulents, which makes me suspect that it is indeed an exotic succulent.

Above: A close-up of Aeonium Arboreum. Each cluster of leaves is arranged in such a way that from a distance they can be mistaken for flowers. The bristles on the edges of the leaves are not prickly, but are slightly coarse. The red-brown leaf tips contribute to the visual profile of the succulent by "outlining" the leaf edges.

The few information sources I've found online seem uncertain about the origins of this succulent. Some say that it originates from the Canary Islands, others say they are native to East Africa. Wherever they may have evolved, these plants have taken root here in South Africa, and as long as they are grown in a sheltered, partially-shaded area of the garden, they behave much like our local succulent varieties and thrive.

Spring!

I love spring; the sounds of baby birds screeching for more food, the sudden downpours, the bright green of young leaves erupting from deciduous trees, the look of confusion on the weatherman's face.
Here in Cape Town, there's a certain vibe that occurs in spring. It feels as though everyone "wakes up". It's hard to describe, actually, but there's a feeling of excitement at the onset of summer. Suddenly there are hints of coconut-scented suntan lotion, ice cream and braai smoke. Slowly, the bravest of us begin to bare some skin in anticipation of the bikini and board-short summer to come.

Here are some photos from the garden, from last year's summer and spring. It's still a little early for spring flowers this year, but when they start to show, I'll try to remember to take more photos. These are all South African plants.

Above: Iris

Above: Aloe 

Above: Desert Rose 

 Above: Agapanthus

 Above: Pelargonium (Relative of the Geranium)

Above: Daylily

 Above: Poor Man's Orchid

(In my opinion, the easiest orchid to grow. 
Intense red flowers almost all year round, propagates easily)

 Above: Freesia

 Above: Daisy

 Above: Daisy

 Above: Pincushion

Leopard Toad Photos

This particular Leopard Toad comes with a story. It lived beside our little pond for several months, often coming into the house or sitting on the low wall beside our path. It was very friendly, sometimes trundling towards you in a four-legged shuffle, as if in greeting. If you picked it up, it would sit on the palm of your hand without squirming and without attempting the typical death-defying toad leap. For a whole winter, this toad sang to us, greeted us and tormented our cat. For the sanity of the cat, I had a little chat with the toad and moved it to the larger pond on the other side of the property.

These photos are from a photo session with this obliging amphibian. (Beginner photographer tip: Bathtubs! They're fantastic if you want a white background, without the cost or fuss of creating one from card or cloth.)
(I'm feeling a bit lazy today, so I haven't edited the photos in Photoshop. Please excuse the grey backgrounds and the spots of dirt around the toad's feet.)

Above - This one's my favorite photo. Such a cutey!

Above - The metallic colors within the eye remind me of glass beads inlaid with gold leaf. Nice inspiration for bead makers.

If you ever have the good fortune of meeting a Leopard Toad, be gentle with them, and remember to wash your hands after handling them.

Western Cape Leopard Toad

The Leopard Toad was once a rarity here in Cape Town. Urbanization, pollution and domestic animals had decimated this species' numbers, and they were placed on the endangered species list. Thanks to the hard work and dedication of many different conservation organizations, the Leopard Toads now thrive.

We have a little pond in our garden, surrounded by ferns and lilies. The toads love to camp out around here and lay eggs. I plan to create a safe egg-laying area for the toads - currently, many of their eggs are eaten by my goldfish.

They're very friendly, and if you're gentle, they will be quite calm when you handle them. Wash your hands thoroughly if you do touch them, though - their skin emits a substance that can create hallucinations. I have accidentally ingested some Leopard Toad, um, emission. It was, erm, interesting, to say the least, especially since it was the middle of the night and Princess the cat had also swallowed some toad sweat. Don't try this at home, folks. The hangover's not worth it.

I'll be posting more Leopard Toad pics in my next post.