by KBergReserve

Future Events

TALKS PLANNED FOR 2018: 17 FEBRUARY 2018: Joselyn Mormille will present on ‘An interdisciplinary study on the human-baboon interface in Rooiels’. Join us at Nivenia Hall, Harold Porter Botanical Gardens in Betty’s Bay on 17 February 2018. 17 MARCH 2018 Otto Schmidt of the Cape Bird Club will be presenting, ‘Namibia – Prime birding in magnificent and varied landscapes’. We will be travelling through widely varying & visually stunning habitats, from the arid Namib Desert to the lush waterways of the Caprivi Strip, looking for the rare & colourful birds that make Namibia, our immediate…
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by KBergReserve

The Annual Red Disa Pilgrimage: A Fern Encounter

It was time for the pilgrimage. As everyone knows, any even slightly botanical wonk in the Western Cape is required, in January and February, to undertake an arduous mountain hike into a kloof containing an appropriate patch of Afrotemperate forest, locate a wet, more or less south facing, vegetated cliff face and do homage to the icon of Western Cape flora that blooms there at this time of year, the lovely Disa uniflora. The infirm may, in special circumstances, be exempt. Others, however, who fail to observe this sacred rite, are summarily condemned to twelve…
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by KBergReserve

Pringle Bay Hack Report No 131

On 28 January 2018 the Pringle Bay Hack Group convened for the first hack of 2018. We agreed to adhere to our summer start time of 08h00 until further notice. The target today was mainly Rooikrantz, along Hangklip - and False Bay Roads. Although the hacking was tough, the numbers in the Group made the big Rooikrantz trees disappear quickly. Thank you, guys that was a good achievement. A few bright stars displayed their enthusiasm to get rid of these invaders! Today’s attendance was just as good as November’s record with the following 30 members…
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by KBergReserve

Betty’s Bay Hack Report No 658

What a glorious way to celebrate 55 years of hacking in Betty’s Bay! The day was perfect; there were four new hackers, a strong Pringle Bay contingent and lots of the usual hackers. Thank you all! It was a difficult hack as the Fynbos is thick and most of the Rooikrans could only be reached by cutting one’s way in and then crawling in to cut the offenders. The tea was made by Merran Silberbauer, and the sandwiches by Jane Fearnhead. Thank you ladies. Penguin Place donated the bread- thank you! The troops were: John…
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by KBergReserve

“A History of the Betty’s Bay Wild Flower Society” by Jill Attwell – an e-book!

Just a few lucky people will still have the slim booklet telling the story of the precursor of the Kogelberg Branch of the Botanical Society. Ten years ago the branch wanted to reprint it, author Jill Attwell was thrilled but it was then too costly. Fast forward to 2015 when SucceedGroup offered to produce an e-book of our “Your Place in the Kogelberg” by Tim Attwell (no relation to Jill). Add in our sterling treasurer, Natalie van Wulwen and her inspiration to sit down and type out Jill’s book and we now can offer a…
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by KBergReserve

The Wednesday Hack Report

A very bad patch of Spider Gum was discovered on the slopes of the Klein Hangklip Mountains between Pringle Bay and Rooi Els as we were cleaning up the last of the Myrtle. The group concentrated on this, with a lot of digging, cutting and pulling involved. The problem is huge and will require a lot more effort. People attending the Wednesday hack were: Tom Dreyer, Ed Silberbauer, Frik Potgieter, Jan Joubert, Ulli Niemann, Selwyn Botha, Selwyn's son, Chris Geldenhuys, Mike Bagley , Mike Robinson, Willem Stiglingh, Sue Fielden,Sally and Richard  Smeda
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by KBergReserve

Talk Report – February 2018

Christmas in the Drakensberg (and the hunt for Gladiolus symonsii) By Rea Borcherds Unsurprisingly, gladiolus, with its long, sharply pointed leaves, is named after the Latin word for a sword, hence its common name, ‘sword lily’.  This showy plant and popular cut flower is familiar to gardeners and florists world wide, but what may be less known is the fact that it is hybridized and cultivated from a rather insignificant native South African plant, Gladiolus daleni.  This, and other interesting facts about gladioli, emerged from Rachel Saunders’ talk last Saturday. She kept the audience captivated…
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by KBergReserve

Chairman’s News

Karen's Verge It was the height of Aristea season in Betty's Bay. Karen Fry phoned to say the verge across the road - Fourstreams - was stunning. There they were a stand of stately brilliant blue heads of Aristea  capitata (please put in italics). Alas the adjacent verges showed just short, cropped plants. Karen had especially asked the municipal workers to leave her verge; the result was this splendid display. We can all take steps to beautify our own patch of verge bearing in mind that in some cases visibility for traffic is important. Old…
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