Fynbos & Flora

Images of flower from the Grootbos nature reserve

I am really obsessed with flowers, my father was a florist for the past 30 years and I have grown up loving the beauty of them.  That is particularly why I am so intrigued with the Fynbos Biomes, I simply LOVE flowers :)  Besides what we learned about the fynbos, I wanted to do a little bit of research on my own:

• Fynbos is a fire-adapted vegetation that requires regular burning for its persistence. In the absence of fire, fynbos is gradually replaced by thicket species. Fire in fynbos is far from a disaster, but rather a crucial trigger that resets the fynbos ‘succesional clock’. It provides the stimulus for dormant seeds to germinate and the opportunity for many annuals, short-lived perennials and bulbs to grow, flower and seed during times of abundant nutrients and sunlight (http://www.grootbos.com/en/about/fynbos/). FIRE IS GREAT!

The beautiful and unique Protea, South Africa's national flower

• The unique flora of the Cape is under severe pressure from human activities. The fynbos of the mountainous areas is generally well protected in a considerable reserve network established to ensure plentiful supplies of clean drinking water for the growing human population below.

• South Africa's Cape Floristic Region is characterized as a Fynbos Biome, and is the smallest of the world's six florisitc regions.

• The flowers of the fynbos are at great risk from agricultural and urban development, afforestation and uncontrolled bushfires. Land purchase and protection are therefore essential to safeguard their future (http://www.fauna-flora.org/fynbos.php).

• Fynbos is not only famous for its remarkable diversity, but also the beauty of many of its wildflowers.

Another picture from Grootbos