Lowland fynbos

Meadowridge Common
An update on the wildflowers of this precious remnant of
Cape Town’s lowland fynbos
by Fiona Watson, Botanical Officer,
Friends of Meadowridge Common

Since my article ‘The wildflowers of

Meadowridge Common’ appeared in the
March 2001 issue of Veld & Flora, my
species list of flora on the Common has
increased from ninety to 120. We have
identified some Red Data species, and
made some interesting observations on
the flowering of the kukumakranka,
Gethyllis afra, and on the effects of
early and late winter rains and a fire on
the flora of this precious lowland fynbos
remnant.

Red Data Species enough physically for a DNA match.

ABOVE: Ursinia anthemoides.
Meadowridge has three Red Data We hope to introduce more plants from
Book species: Moraea elsiae, Diastella this source. Meanwhile we endeavour to BELOW: Diastella proteoides.
proteoides and Lampranthus reptans. keep the established plants as clear as
These have been registered with CREW possible of invading sorrel (Rumex) spe- BOTTOM LEFT: Moraea elsiae.
(the Custodian of Rare and Endangered cies, Cynodon dactylon (kweek grass) BOTTOM RIGHT: Lampranthus reptans.
Wildflowers) who lent me their GPS to and Pelargonium capitatum. Photos: Fiona Watson.
provide them with their exact positions. Our five clusters of Lampranthus
They are being monitored regularly for reptans appear stressed during sum-
any changes. mer, their leaves turning reddish, but
Moraea elsiae which was consid- they soon revert to green and grow
ered ‘rare or possibly extinct’ by Peter actively when the winter rains come.
Goldblatt in his book The moraeas of Their golden yellow flowers form attrac-
South Africa is particularly threatened. tive carpets in the spring. One of the
There are five plants on the Common. clusters was dug up by some teenage
For the first time since I started observ- boys collecting soil to make bicycle
ing them seven years ago, two of the ramps on a path, but they were soon
plants set seed after flowering between confronted by me and some others and
5 November and 5 December in 2006. persuaded to cease such activities.
I had cross-pollinated two flowers, and
having observed a bee on one of the
plants, assume bees are the pollinator
of the others. At the end of December I
harvested six seeds which I handed over
to Graham Duncan of Kirstenbosch. It
would be wonderful if they are viable
and germinate so that more of the
plants can be propagated.
Diastella proteoides was originally
represented by three plants on the
Common, but one was mowed down by
City Council employees who acted out-
side their instructions for the day. The
good news is that plants have also been
found on Kenilworth Racecourse, close

142 September 2007 Veld&Flora

Kukumakrankas under pressure?
Gethyllis afra, which grows on the
Common, is a beautiful white kuku-
makranka with a red median strip
under each of its 3 cm long outer peri-
anth lobes. The three inner lobes are
thinner and without any markings. I
observed a large bee visiting a flower to
collect pollen, and wondered if it was the
pollinator. I have been recording weath-
er patterns in relation to its flowering
and submitted some data in 2006 to
the South African National Biodiversity
Institute (SANBI). My data* (shown on
the graph opposite) over the two years
supports Chris Daniels observations on
kukumakrankas in his article, ‘Are the
days of the kukumakranka numbered?’
in the March 2007 issue of Veld &
Flora where he wrote that ‘passing cold
fronts accompanied by a definite drop
in atmospheric pressure, irrespective of
whether there are showers or not, have
a definite effect on the production …of
flowers during the flowering season.’

ABOVE LEFT: A bee collecting pollen from the

kukumakranka, Gethyllis afra .

BELOW LEFT: Gethyllis afra leaves.

BELOW: Gethyllis afra flowers after a drop in

atmospheric pressure, regardless of rain.
Photos: Fiona Watson

September 2007 Veld&Flora 143

ABOVE: Oxalis obtusa. Photo: Fiona Watson
Fire on the Common
Fire is necessary approximately every
fifteen years for the healthy growth of
fynbos, and we tried hard and long
to organize a controlled burn for the
Common. Authorities, however, were
unsupportive since the Common is
situated in an urban area. But on 10
December 2003, a fire occurred on one
section of the Common, possibly started
by vagrants and extinguished by the
Fire Brigade. It was not the areas we
had envisaged for a fire, or the favoured
time of April but nevertheless it proved
to be a blessing. The displays of Oxalis
obtusa and Ursinia anthemoides in late
winter were stunning. A new plant of
Aspalathus callosa appeared near where
another had died two years previous-
ly, and Struthiola ciliata flourished as
did Trachyandra ciliata. Leucadendron
salignum and Pelargonium cucullatum
re-sprouted. Asparagus capensis and
Asparagus rubicundus showed no ill
effects, but we did lose one plant of
144 September 2007 Veld&Flora
Aspalathus retroflexa subsp. bicolor.
Another fortunately re-appeared in
2007. The damp-loving Geissorhiza
aspera lost their sheltering shrubs
and did not re-appear. The number of
Wahlenbergia capensis, which flowers
in October and November, was much
reduced the following year.
After the fire, the invasive Eragrostis
curvula, which had been smothering
the area, started to re-sprout. Three of
us set about removing it, taking care to
re-plant any bulbs found tangled in its
roots. This proved to be a very success-
ful venture in clearing the area, and the
few remaining grass plants and seed-
lings are removed on an ongoing basis.
Effects of early or late winter rains
In 2005 the winter rains contin-
ued well into spring with most fall-
ing in June and August, and some
in September. In 2006, they peak-
ed earlier with the highest figure in
May and much less than 2005 fall-
ing in June, August and September.
The effects on our bulbous plants
was minimal in most species on the
Common, with magnificent displays
of Sparaxis bulbifera and species of
Asphodelaceae, Hemerocallidaceae,
Colchicaceae and Iridaceae doing well
in both years. Our seepage area in
spring 2006 was, however, already dry
and there was therefore no Holothrix
villosa, Disa bracteata or Triglochin
bulbosa present. A pleasant, yet still
worrying appearance, however was
that of only one plant of Pterygodium
catholicum. Once present in signifi-
cant numbers, it had been absent for
several years. Its oil-seeking bee pol-
linator is apparently also decreasing in
numbers. Is it approaching extinction?
There was a significant difference
in the emergence of dicotyledons
depending on seed for their annual
appearances. Those flowering late in
the year were reduced in numbers or
even absent. In the dry seepage area,
Monopsis debilis and Drosera trinerva
failed to flower. Elsewhere there were
very few Wahlenbergia capensis or W.
hispidula. Erica subdivaricata flowered
earlier than usual in October but then
again at its normal time of January. I
hope the seed of those absent species is
still viable in the soil and will germinate
again in 2007.
Meadowridge Common, as a small
remnant of the Cape Sand Plain Fynbos,
needs protection. Its legal status at
present in terms of the Cape Town
Metropolitan Open Spaces (MOSS) is
designated ‘Non-negotiable’ and ‘High
value’ for two parts of the Common,
and the Bergvliet/Meadowridge Local
Structural Plan recommends that both
areas be designated ‘Non-negotiable’.
We are in the process of applying
for Provincial Heritage Status on the
grounds of botanical value even though
it seems to have no archaeological sig- ABOVE: Aspalathus retroflexa subsp.
nificance, which counts against us. bicolor flowers from October to
December.
An encouraging development is the Photo: Fiona Watson
deployment of a Cape Town Nature
Conservation Reserve Manager to RIGHT: Fiona Watson with Amaryllis
work with the Friends of Meadowridge belladonna (March lilies) on
Meadowridge Common.
Common in its management and reha- Photo: Sybil Morris
bilitation. We have been allocated these
services for one day each week. BELOW LEFT: Sparaxis bulbifera pro-
vides magnificent spring displays.
Photo: Fiona Watson
* For a list of the figures on which the
graph is based, please contact the editor at BELOW RIGHT: Erica subdivaricata.
voget@kingsley.co.za. Photo: Fiona Watson

BELOW: Fiona Watson with Amaryllis bel-

ladonna (March lillies) on Meadowridge
Common. Photo: Sybil Morris.

September 2007 Veld&Flora 145