Life Wonderings of a Nature Lover: January 16-20 2020 Wildflowers in the Southern Moluti-Drakensberg World Heritage Site

 

Three intrepid ladies, two from the UK, requested a five day Southern Secrets Hiking and Backpacking Wildflower Hike. We hiked up to Tarn Cave, where we based ourselves for four nights, from Bushmans Nek. Then we explored the Sehlabathebe Rock Gardens, Secret Garden and the area above Tarn Cave. The first two days were very hot and sunny, then an overcast cool and cloudy day coming in for rain, the fourth day was very wet and it started clearing as we made our way back to Bushmans Nek on the last day. The weather didn’t deter Rosie, Alice and Kate, it was an amazing time spent amongst the stunning array of flowers!

 

These are a few of the 232 different plants species we saw over the five days, including some landscapes to give an idea of the terrain. A full list follows at the end of this blog.

 

Day 1: Bushmans Nek to Tarn Cave

Schizoglossum stenoglossum

 

 

Asclepias macropus

 

Corycium nigrescens

 

Cussonia paniculata

 

Pachycarpus campanulatus subsp. campanulatus

 

Neobolusia tysonii

 

Schizochilus bulbinella

 

Day 2: Tarn Cave to Sehlabathebe Rock Gardens circuit

Kniphofia ritualuis

 

Albuca fastigiata

 

Disa versicolor

 

Rumex woodii

 

Xysmalobium involucratum

 

Disa brevicornis

 

Corycium dracomontanum

 

Eucomis autumnalis

 

Schizoglossum elingue

 

 

Asclepias humilis

 

Polygala rhinostigma

 

Chironia krebsii

 

 

Lindernia conferta

 

Huperzia saururus

 

 

Papaver aculeatum

 

Senecio macrospermus

 

Disa orephilia

 

 

Selago galpinii

 

Satyrium longicauda

 

Disa nivea

 

Craterocapsa tarsodes

 

Romulea thodei

 

Dianthus mooiensis

 

Pimpinella caffra

 

Eucomis schijffii

 

 

Zaluzianskya microsiphon

 

Day 3: Tarn Cave to Secret Garden circuit

 

Kniphofia caulescens

 

Silene bellidoides

 

Silene burchellii

 

Manulea crassifolia

 

Cysticapnos pruinosa

 

Gnidia compacta

 

 

Galium capense subsp. garipense

 

Nemesia caerulea

 

Disperis cardiophora

 

 

Satyrium microrrhynchum

 

 

Rhodohypoxis baurii

 

Lobelia flaccida

 

Moraea inclinata

 

Senecio barbatus

 

Berkheya rhapontica

 

Protea subvestita

 

Berkheya multijuga

 

Aponogeton ranunculiflorus

 

Pelargonium alchemilloides

 

Pterygodium magnum

 

Alepidea amatymbica

 

 

Dracomonticola virginea

 

 

Crassula natans

 

Ornithogalum paludosum

 

Diascia barberae

 

 

 

 

Lobelia erinus

 

Day 4: Fossicking above Tarn Cave in the rain

 

Disperis renibractea

 

Schizochilus flexuosus

 

Disa oreophila subsp. oreophila

 

Geranium drakensbergense

 

Holothrix scopularia

 

Pterygodium hastatum

 

Habenaria lithophila

 

Streptocarpus pusillus

 

Crassula vaginata

 

 

Limosella inflata

 

Passerina montana

 

Sebaea thomasii

 

Relhania acerosa

 

 

Day 5: Return hike to Bushmans Nek

 

Satyrium cristatum var. longilabiatum

 

Satyrium parviflorum

 

 

Dierama argyreum

 

 

The full list of plants we identified:

Agapanthus campanulatus

Ajuga ophrydis

Albuca fastigiata

Albuca setosa (=pachychlamys)

Alchemilla colura

Alepidea amatymbica

Alepidea natalensis

Aponogeton junceus

Aponogeton ranunculiforus

Arctotis arctotoides

Argyrolobium marginatum

Aristea woodii

Asclepias cucullata

Asclepias humilis

Asclepias macropus

Asplenium monanthes

Aster bakerianus

Aster perfoliatus

Athrixia pinifolia

Athyrium schimperi

Berkheya cirsiifolia

Berkheya multijuga

Berkheya rhapontica

Berkheya setifera

Buchnera simplex

Cerastium arabidis

Cheilanthes quadripinnata

Chironia krebsii

Chlorophytum krookianum

Chrysanthemoides monilifera

Chrysocoma ciliata

Cineraria dieterlenii

Cineraria lyrata

Commelina africana

Corycium dracomontanum

Corycium nigrescens

Cotula socialis

Crassula dependens

Crassula natans

Crassula peploides

Crassula umbraticola

Crassula vaginata

Craterocapsa tarsodes

Cussonia paniculata

Cyathea dregei

Cynoglossum austro-africanum

Cynoglossum spelaeum

Cyperus ruestris

Cyperus schlechteri

Cyperus semitrifidus

Cyperus sphaerocephalus

Cyrtanthus epiphyticus

Cyrtanthus flanaganii

Cysticapnos pruinosa

Delosperma lavisiae

Dianthus basuticus

Dianthus mooiensis

Diascia barberae

Diclis reptans

Diclis rotundifolia

Dierama argyreum

Dierama dissimile

Dierama sp. small, pink flowers like D. pictum

Dimorphotheca jucunda

Disa brevicornis

Disa nivea

Disa oreophila

Disa oreophila subsp. erecta

Disa oreophila subsp. oreophila

Disa stachyoides

Disa versicolor

Disperis cardiophora

Disperis renibractea

Dracomonticola virginea

Drosera natalensis

Elaphoglossum acrostichoides

Elaphoglossum drakensbergense

Epilobium capense

Erica alopecurus

Erica caffrorum

Eriocaulon dregei

Eucomis autumnalis

Eucomis schijffii

Eulophia hians var. hians (=clavicornis)

Felicia caespitosa

Felicia petiolata

Ficinia cinammomea

Galium capense

Gazania krebsiana

Geranium drakensbergense

Geranium multisectum

Geranium schechteri

Geranium wakkerstroomianum

Gerbera ambigua

Gerbera piloselloides

Gladiolus parvulus

Gnidia compacta

Gomphostigma viratum

Gunnera perpensa

Habenaria lithophila

Harveya speciosa

Hebenstretia dura

Helichrysum appendiculatum

Helichrysum argentissimum

Helichrysum herbaceum

Helichrysum krookii

Helichrysum pagophilum

Helichrysum spiralepis

Heliophila formosa

Heliophila rigidiuscula

Hermannia cristata

Hermannia woodii

Hesperantha baurii

Hesperantha grandiflora

Holothrix scopularia

Huperzia saururus

Hypericum lalandii

Hypoxis argentea

Hypoxis parvula

Indigofera dimidiata

Jamesbrittenia breviflora

Juncus effusus

Kauhautia amatymbica

Kniphofia brachystachya

Kniphofia caulescens

Kniphofia ritualis

Ledebouria ovatifolia

Lessertia perennans

Leucosidea sericea (no flowers)

Limosella inflata

Lindernia conferta

Lobelia erinus

Lobelia flaccida

Lobelia vanreenensis

Lotononis lotononoides

Lotononis pulchella

Macowania pulvinaris

Manulea crassifolia

Mariscus congestus

Melasma scabrum

Merxmuellera macowanii

Mohira rigida

Mohria vestita

Monocymbium ceresiiforme

Moraea albicuspa

Moraea brevistyla

Moraea inclinata

Myosotis semiamplexicaulis

Nemesia caerulea

Neobolusia tysonii

Ochna arorea (tree – not flowering)

Ornithogalum graminifolium

Ornithogalum juncifolium

Ornithogalum paludosum

Orthochilus (=Eulophia) foliosus

Oxalis depressa

Oxalis obliquifolia

Oxalis smithiana

Pachycarpus campanulatus subsp. campanulatus

Papaver aculeatum

Passerina montana

Pelargonium alchemilloides

Pelargonium ranunculophyllum

Pelargonium schlecteri

Pentanisia prunelloides

Persicaria lapathifolia

Pimpinella caffra

Plectranthus calycina

Polygala gracilenta

Polygala hottentotta

Polygala rhinostigma

Protea dracomontana

Protea roupelliae

Protea subvestita

Psammotropha mucronata

Pteridium aquilinum subsp. aquilinum

Pterygodium hastatum

Pterygodium magnum

Relhania acerosa

Rhodohypoxis baurii

Romulea thodei

Rubus ludwigii

Rubus rigidus

Rumex lanceolatus

Rumex woodii

Satyrium cristatum var. longilabiatum

Satyrium longicauda

Satyrium microrrhynchum

Satyrium neglectum

Satyrium parviflorum

Scabiosa columbaria

Schizochilus bulbinella

Schizochilus flexuosus

Schizoglossum elingue

Schizoglossum stenoglossum

Scirpus ficinoides

Searsia (=Rhus) dentata (fruit)

Searsia (=Rhus) discolor (fruit)

Sebaea natalensis

Sebaea thomasii

Selago galpinii

Senecio achilleifolius

Senecio barbatus

Senecio brevilorus

Senecio discodregeanus

Senecio glaberrimus

Senecio harveianus

Senecio macrocephalus

Senecio macrospermus

Senecio rhomboideus

Senecio subrubriflorus

Silene bellidoides

Silene burchellii

Sopubia cana

Stachys kuntzei

Streptocarpus pusillus

Themeda triandra

Thesium pallidum

Trachyandra asperata

Trifolium burchellianum

Trogoglophytum capillaceum

Urginea macrocentra

Vernonia hirsuta

Vernonia natalensis

Wahlenbergia cuspidata

Wahlenbergia fasciculata

Wahlenbergia huttonii

Wahlenbergia krebsii

Watsonia confusa

Watsonia socium

Xysmalobium involucratum

Zaluzianskya microsiphon