Some birds, such as the swallows and swifts are preparing for long journeys across the oceans – just to return to the same spot next year. And that has been happening eons before the concept of a GPS was even contemplated. The behaviour of the paradise flycatchers can at the moment only be described as frantic. The red widows will soon be drab again and will be grouped with the LBJs.
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The whole dynamics of grassland ecology ensure that shady garden spots are kept to a minimum. What fires do not burn down, the grazers will level. The only places where shade-loving plants are encountered are amongst rock outcrops, in some riverine vegetation, and some southern slopes of mountains.
When the term “Bushveld” is heard, it invokes memories of the Waterberg, Kruger National Park and too many other remarkable areas to name here.
It normally refers to vegetation consisting of sparse trees with an open canopy and some undergrowth that includes perennials, bulbs, succulents and grasses. In most areas, frost is absent or very light. Rainfall is moderate. Soils are not very rich in organics and is quite often sandy, although not always.
The plants featured in this article have been tried and tested and will do well in the Grassland Gardens of South Africa. Many of them will also grow in other regions and the lists supplied here are by no means exhaustive.
It was reported in the Press that September 2015 was the hottest September worldwide since record keeping started some 138 years ago. In our neck of the woods, it certainly was the driest September we have experienced since we started the nursery some ten years ago.
Landscape architect and lecturer, Dr. Ida Breed approached Wildflower Nursery to supply plants for the sidewalks on Nana Sita Street between Paul Kruger street and Nelson Mandela drive in Pretoria. The concept was new: Only use indigenous plants that will reflect the biodiversity of our region and to demonstrate that this concept can be applied to an urban environment. Aesthetics was also a driver, but not the main one.
When driving through the waving grasses on the Highveld, the beautiful bulbs that grow amongst them often go unnoticed since the grasses dwarf them. But with a bit of practice, you will at least spot some of them. The best way, of course, is to take a walk….
The so-called pre-rain flowers are most conspicuous in areas that have been burnt early in winter. Most of them sprout from a woody rootstock. This “underground storage” is a protection against the ravages of fire but is also a food reservoir. That is why they can sprout and flower even before the first rains. Even grasses store their food in their roots during winter.
In an environmentally friendly garden, it is important to create different “layers” of plant growth to simulate the habitat that occurs in nature. The shrub “layer” forms the middle layer that creates a habitat for birds that feed on the ground. One bird worthy of having in your garden is Burchell’s coucal that loves this kind of habitat.
What is not known to many people is that the perennials and bulbs that occur in the Grassland Biome are only surpassed by the plants from the Fynbos Biome. There really is a tremendous variety to choose from.
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