Autumn is fast disappearing; we lit our first fire this week and April has been as dry as dust, the driest April since we bought our house in 2004. But rain is at last on the way. So, taking advantage of a walk in the park before the weather changes was on the agenda and the National Botanical Garden at Kirstenbosch, our local jewel, was the obvious place to go on Pensioners Free Tuesday. It is always a delight to walk there, especially as it changes so much with the seasons. Many beds are being replanted now that lock down's end has enabled many of the garden workers to return
A group of enthusiastic young pupils there for the day
Cape Town school children have been exposed to nature in this way from a very early age
and they are given lectures on different aspects of the gardens
Lovely to see them playing on open ground
There are many trees in the gardens which are older than 100 years and this oak is one of them
A Dietes Bicolour iris, one of our indigenous irises
A lovely sculpture at the Otter Pond, where Cape Otters have been spotted fishing for crabs
and we spotted a crab under the water
Tibouchina Elegans, aka Glory Tree made a beautiful showing next to the pond
There are Tree aloes that are remarkably tall
The label on the tree
And a note to the history. When Jan van Riebeeck needed to keep the Khoikhoi out of the early settlement,
he planted a hedge of indigenous wild almonds
A part of the hedge is still there in Kirstenbosch, nearly 360 years later
and avoiding a long, hot climb up hill. Old bones do not make good climbing appliances
You are up in the canopy with great views of nature, birds, trees and plants and the mountain and the city below
This bit of the mountain is called, appropriately, Castle Rock, as it looks like a castle’s ramparts
You can walk up to the top of the gardens and then follow a contour path taking you up to the top of Table Mountain
A little easier than climbing up the front of the mountain from the City
And no, we have never done it. The Cable car works well for us!
You meet the nicest people up there
The plaque which gives information about the founder of the Kirstenbosch Garden
Professor Pearson's grave below the North African Cedar
which was given to him by his colleagues from the Royal Botanical Gardens at Kew
The HW Pearson Building at UCT was damaged in the recent Table Mountain fire
"Choose the best cycad picture said John"
But Lynne can’t choose as she thinks they are all so magnificent
Our most ancient of plants. Many of these are hundreds of years old
and cycads were here when dinosaurs roamed the earth
Supposed to be ancestors of conifers, not palms
When you climb down from the Cycad forest you come to The Dell, where a natural spring flows between rocks
and causes a lovely cool micro climate even on the hottest day. You can take off your shoes and paddle down the hill
One of Lynne’s favourite flowering plants, Streptocarpus
She grew three colours in a low plant pot on her coffee table in London which never stopped flowering
But she cannot keep one alive in Cape Town where they grow profusely in the wild
A small waterfall in The Dell
A blue dragonfly on a leaf
More magnificent trees as you walk downhill
Kirstenbosch is very disabled friendly and there are lovely easy walkways for wheelchairs
as well as a perfumed walk for those whose sight is not good,
where you can touch all the plants and smell the different aromas
Aloe flowering season is upon us
You can see why the Strelitzia is also known as the Bird of Paradise plant
Ready to take flight
The residue of our awful April fire on Table Mountain could still be seen as smoke in the air
It had been extinguished, but small root fires were still smouldering
Time for lunch and, thankfully, there were several tables free at Fynkos,
the Kirstenbosch Tea Room near the entrance gate, and there was also plentiful parking
Walking gives one a great thirst and this was a good quencher
Lolly chose the vegetarian option of a health sandwich accompanied by very good crisp chips
Lynne had the local smoked trout and cream cheese sandwich with capers
(and red onions which she asked to be removed) and the same chips
If you order a plate of these glorious twice or thrice cooked chips it will cost you R54
The sandwiches are R108 and come with the chips, or salad
John had the biggest burger ever and it came with onion rings, some salad and those chips
He had his without the bun
The bill
and who should be at the next table but Bruce Jack, who has always made excellent wine
We found and bought his wines in several UK supermarkets in 2019
We are currently really enjoying his Shiraz at home. He has some wines on special at the moment
https://bruce-jack.obtainwine.com/
A quick tour of the Garden Centre which sells a good selection of plants and other gardening items
A very good selection of seeds too, and a good bookshop next door
You do not have to enter the Gardens to visit the shops
A texture shot of a fluffy leafed plant
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