They are very healthy and I am happy for anyone in the Durban area to have them.

I really don’t want to post them!

Helen McNulty
African Cotton

You will have noticed that we have given the site a new year’s facelift, a little cleaner and simpler. We hope you like it! Any suggestions welcome…  In addition to aesthetics, we will slowly but surely add new features to the site, the first of which is the Plant and Seed Exchange.

We began Sprig as a way to learn more about plants, which included sharing cuttings of our favourite plants with friends and family. We would like to extend this to our digital community on Sprig and encourage you to share seeds and cuttings with (or get them from) gardeners around South Africa. In all likelihood, unless you live in the same city as the person you are dealing with, this will have to be done by post. Therefore, only seeds and cuttings that will survive the journey (here we are thinking hardy plants, succulents etc) should be shared.

Please check out the new section, reply (and maybe assist) those who are already looking, offer something new or submit a request for that elusive flora. Details on how to submit HERE (scroll to the bottom). Again, suggestions and feedback welcome, we are just trying this out

Do you keep Comfrey runners and Echinacea seed?

If so, I would be very interested in buying them.

Kind regards,

Lynda Jones

Our plants are home to a multitude of other species including a massive furry caterpillar that looks identical to one of the leaves. These plants seem to have been connected to the lemon tree for many years and are happily growing and floating over the lemon tree branches. We are moving house soon and will miss the air plants in our new home. Does anyone know of a way we can take a small cutting without harming the parent plant and ensuring the cutting survives?

Addo Elephant National Park

Spekboom (Portulacaria Afra) grows in abundance in the drier parts of the Eastern Cape, especially on the high plateau Karoo hill slopes or flats (c. 400 to 1,060 meters above sea level) and is particularly prominent in the Addo bush to the south where there is significant summer heat. A vast section of Spekboom grows in the Addo Elephant National Park, situated in the Eastern Cape Province, near Port Elizabeth. The park was created to protect the once numerous Eastern Cape elephants. It consists of 12,126 hectares (30,315 acres) of bushveld, dominated mostly by Spekboom, which covers approximately 80% of the park’s area. Some 500 species of plants are to be found in the park. Elephants eat P. Afra from the top downwards allowing the plant to spread itself vegetatively by spreading horizontal branches at ground level. Outside the park the same plants are eaten by goats who eat it from ground level upwards preventing the plant from spreading vegetatively. Consequently, these plants must rely solely on seed to proliferate the species which often proves difficult in such a dry climate. As a result, it was observed that inside the park, where the plant is subjected to browsing by elephants, it survives and spreads successfully, whereas outside the park the plant is becoming sparse as a result of overgrazing and poor regeneration.

Spekboom

Spekboom Succulent Thicket

P. Afra is also prominent in the Spekboom Succulent Thicket (aka Spekboomveld), an area of some 5,011 sq.km., 1.76% of which is conserved in some reserves such as at Graaff Reinet and on higher altitude slopes. The steep mountain slopes in the Eastern Cape and the eastern parts of the Western Cape receive perhaps 250 to 300 mm of rainfall per year, mainly in the autumn and spring. Temperatures are moderate, although extremes may be experienced for short periods. The thicket occurs on sandstone, quartzitic and shale substrata, which gives rise to shallow soils. Spekboom can form pure stands, but usually dominates a dense scrub which includes woody shrubs, succulent herbs and grasses.

Spekboom Succulent Thicket

Other Areas

Spekboom also grows on the eastern areas of the country from the Eastern Cape northwards into KwaZulu-Natal, Swaziland and the Northern Province in rocky areas of dry succulent Karoo scrub, thicket and bushveld. It also occurs in dry hot river valleys of the old eastern Transvaal (Gauteng, Limpopo and Mpumalanga provinces most of the North West) and north into Mozambique.

We have already discussed its varied uses but it seems to have a few more….

It can be used to treat AIDS-related illnesses, high blood pressure and can be used in cooking. Lastly, it is used in love potions. Click here and scroll down to ‘Love’ if you want to make one!

Still and nursery in Hogsback

As many of you know, I keep returning to Hogsback, and Essential Amathole is one of the reasons. This initiative follows an incredible approach to sustainable rural economic development in 4 ways. Firstly, it is based on a public-private-community partnership. Participation in this manner allows for equitable, responsible and sustainable development, and is a model that can (and should) be replicated as a priority for any development. Secondly, there are both direct and indirect beneficiaries. Not only is the project addressing severe unemployment in the region, but it has established a community trust that holds 24.8% of the profits, the proceeds of which go into a wide range of community-based organisations and initiatives. Thirdly, the business itself is based on environmentally sustainable methods. All farming is organic and focused primarily on indigenous plants endemic to the Eastern Cape. Finally, it is essential oils so it smells absolutely wonderful!

Here are some pictures I took of the nursery in Hogsback:

Nursery

Rose geranium nursery

Here are some close ups of the crops:

Rose geranium

Lavendar

Lemon balm

The project is still in its second phase of implementation so there are a lot more exciting possibilities emerging daily. I would highly recommend a visit if you are anywhere near those parts. It is a great example of an environmentally sustainable economic development model. And all the sites smell fantastic!

Scadoxus puniceus, commonly known as the Paintbrush Lily, is a Southern African species of Amaryllidaceae, which is also found in Tanzania and Ethiopia. Its preferred habitat is cool, moist leaf litter and it is found in shady places, such as ravines and forests. The plant’s bright red, round fruits are about 10mm in diameter and each produces a single seed. Since the eighteenth century this species has been popular in Europe, partly because of its easy cultivation and high germination rate.

paintbrush 1

paintbrush 2