JANUARY WALK

Leopard’s Kloof, 16 January 2016

Tim Attwell 

Yes. There they were: A trail of Disa uniflora midway up the second last waterfall in Leopard’s Kloof, in plain sight. A second group graced the waterfall high above the pool at the head of the kloof. Mission accomplished, smiles all round.

A strong wind made any other trail in the Kogelberg’s mountains distinctly uninviting, but Leopard’s Kloof provided both shade and windless conditions for eleven eager Botsoc walkers on the annual pilgrimage to see the icon of Western Cape mountain flowers strutting their stuff. We were not disappointed.

Disa uniflora is not one of those flowers you happen upon by chance. Spotting it requires effort. You have to know where and when to look. South or southwest facing wet cliffs, streamsides and seeps in mountainous areas, preferably in shade and only in January, February and, if you’re lucky, March.

Disa uniflora, or Red disa, is distinguished by its large size relative to the 182 other Disa’s in the genus (143 of which are endemic to South Africa) and its special relationship with its pollinator, the mountain pride butterfly, Aeropetes tulbaghia, the largest butterfly in the Western Cape mountains. Strangely, the mountain pride butterfly is attracted only to red flowers in the west of its range and orange flowers in the east.

Of course Leopard’s Kloof in the Harold Porter National Botanical Garden is not only about Disas. The winding trail offers some challenges as you criss-cross the mountain stream and make your way up rocky pitches on well constructed ladders. The yellowwood trees Podocarpus latifolius (Real yellowwood) and the smaller streamside Podocarpus elongatus (Breede river yellowwood) demand careful observation to tell them apart, while the silky threads in the leaves of Maytenus acuminata (Silkybark) are always a favourite find.

Happy camaraderie at numerous rest stops and a sense of collective accomplishment topped off this year’s Disa pilgrimage.