Home   Features   Gardening   Article

Discovering how fire can help South Africa’s natural vegetation

New Year found me lucky enough to be transported from cold, damp England in the depths of winter to warm, sunny South Africa in the height of summer.

Whilst there I managed to persuade my family to take a trip to Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens in Cape Town, with the magnificent eastern slopes of Table Mountain as its backdrop. Kirstenbosch covers 1305 acres and is the flagship of the South African National Biodiversity Institute (SANBI), which was established in 1913 to conserve and promote indigenous flora of southern Africa.

The Cape Floral Kingdom is the richest yet smallest plant kingdom in the world containing over 7,000 species in a tiny area of 41,000 km2, with 80% of them occurring nowhere else on Earth.The Cape Peninsula alone contains 2,600 species that’s more than the total number of species in the British Isles crammed into an area smaller than London.

Fynbos, named by the Dutch and pronounced fain-boss, is the national vegetation of the mountains and coastal plains of South Africa and is unique to this area. It is broken into four main plant groups:

Restios, also known as Cape Reeds, are reed-like small leafed plants, which flourish where grasses struggle in nutrient poor soil.

Proteas, named after the Greek sea god, grow as woody shrubs or trees with large leathery leaves and recognisable flower heads. King Protea is the national flower.

Heaths, or Ericas, are probably the most familiar to us; these are the heather-like, low-growing shrubs. With over 600 species there is always some in flower.

Geophytes, are flowering plants that grow from bulbs in which they store nutrients and moisture under the soil. With over 1400 species in this group these flowers are the fastest fynbos to regenerate after fire.

Fire is an important factor in the evolution of fynbos. The plants have developed many strategies to survive fires, and some have even come to depend on it to keep the population healthy, to initiate flowering, disperse seeds or generate germination.

Fire kills diseased plants preventing their spread, it returns nutrients to the soil, clears out old plants and rejuvenates the vegetation.

Back in England in the January I brought a little piece of sunny South Africa home with me in the form of some Crane Flower and King Protea seeds.

Hopefully these will germinate and be a reminder of these beautiful gardens every time I look at them.

Close This site uses cookies. By continuing to browse the site you are agreeing to our use of cookies.Learn More