SPRING EQUINOX 2021

Apparently the exact timing of the Spring Equinox in the Southern Hemisphere was at 21:20 on 22^nd September. Not willing to experience the changeover in the hours of darkness, we drove inland yesterday to experience some of the signs of spring in the Eastern Cape. What better way to start than with the bright new leaves and scarlet spikes of the indigenous Erythrina lysistemon as seen from the garage where we had our tyres checked.

At Baddaford Farm Stall, not far from Fort Beaufort, where we stopped to check on directions, the bougainvilleas were coming into bloom.

As we passed through the Mpofu (Eland) Nature Reserve in the Amatole district, we couldn’t help admiring the spring leaves of the various Vachellia (Acacia) trees that brighten the otherwise drab-looking grassland.

Near the exit gate of this reserve several peach trees are blooming – a wonderful sight to see in spring.

Despite the dry and dusty conditions, there were bright patches of yellow – as well as individual flowers peeking through the grass – Common Gazania (Gazania krebsiana) growing along the road verges.

I couldn’t resist the delightful aroma from the clusters of violet blooms covering the many wisteria plants in the garden of Waylands Country House in the Katberg.

There are also beautiful stands of lavender.

The white arum lilies (Zantedeschia aethiopica) look beautiful in still moist patches everywhere we travelled.

Lastly, here is another bright red flower – which looks like the Indigofera heterophylla in my flower guide – growing in the otherwise barren carpark outside the St John the Evangelist Church in the Winterberg. This church dates back to 1858 and is still used occasionally.

ERYTHRINA LYSISTEMON

I have always loved Erythrina trees, and the Erythrina lysistemon in particular, for it was a part of the environment I grew up in. Although it is widely distributed in South Africa, including in the Eastern Cape, I was initially disappointed to find that the large trees in our garden here are Erythrina caffra – trees I had always associated with childhood visits to the South Coast of KwaZulu-Natal – as the former bear the iconic flowers I was used to. After all, it was the Erythrina lysistemon that featured on the badge of the high school I attended.

It has been an absolute delight to discover a few of these trees growing around the town I live in. While they are drought resistant and can even withstand a limited amount of frost, the particular tree that grows in what was once a well-maintained triangle between roads not far from our home has had a real struggle. It has barely grown in the over three decades I have been walking past it.

Note the Gardenia Thunbergia on the left in the background.

Even though it is growing in hard clay soil and never gets watered, it faithfully produces its beautiful scarlet blooms every winter. It is worth noting that the tree is leafless when in flower – which highlights the beauty of its striking blooms.

If you look carefully at the picture below, you should see the purplish-brown prickles on the branch.

The tightly closed buds …

Soon turn into this:

LAST SPLASHES OF COLOUR

There has been no soft introduction to spring this year. Even the peach blossoms shrivelled within a day or two before disappearing in the dry wind. For two or three days I thought the jasmine flowers would fill the garden with their scent after each hot day – they too shrivelled and died without ceremony. There are not even single flowers to herald the spring in my garden – and not many in the veld either! I think anything that pops its head above ground in the latter gets grazed by wild and domestic animals eager for moisture and the taste of anything other than short, dusty grass.

At least indigenous trees know how to survive in this heat (we have already experienced 41°C without reaching the official summer) and dry weather. Most sport green leaves in different hues, even though some remain bare and skeletal looking. The last vibrant splashes of winter colour come from the Erythrina trees.

The Erythrina caffra in our back garden has been flowering for weeks and is only now beginning to cover itself with green leaves.

Several Erythrina lysistemon trees grow in the suburbs and their scarlet flowers are balm for the soul.

COMMON CORAL TREE

At this time of the year the brilliant scarlet flowers of the coral trees are giving way to the bright green of new leaves. Soon black pods will form that will, in time, pop open to reveal the hard scarlet seeds. The trees in our garden are all Erythrina caffra, which has a fairly limited distribution along the coastal regions of the Eastern Cape and Kwa Zulu Natal – which is why it is sometimes called the Coast Coral Tree. Their vermillion flowers are the most common variety, which you can see in combination with the new leaves in our back garden.

Some trees bear flowers that are more orange and others cream-coloured flowers, such as this specimen photographed in Port Elizabeth.

The tree I grew up with in Mpumalanga, is the widely distributed Erythrina lysistemon. Because it grows over much of the country, it is known as the Common Coral Tree. It is a particularly spectacular tree as the flowers are usually a bright scarlet. They produce abundant nectar that attracts many birds and insects.

Several of these trees have been blooming in and around Grahamstown.

 

ON THE WAY TO KENTON-ON-SEA

Work nudged me towards Kenton-on-Sea this morning. One approaches this seaside village through a farming area, which includes some private game reserves. It gave me a lift along the way to see a zebra and some impala grazing near the road. There is an obvious infestation of prickly pears, clearly evident in the image below, that do not belong in a pristine natural environment. One has to bear in mind though that most of these private reserves were originally farmland.

Prickly pears originated in Mexico and were introduced to South Africa a couple of centuries ago. These plants are viewed as a scourge by some farmers because of their invasive qualities, yet others regard it as a good source of fodder for their animals in the more arid parts of the country. The fruit of the prickly pear is regarded as a delicacy by many and I passed some people picking bucket loads this morning.

As Kenton-on-Sea came into view I was struck by the cattle grazing on the grassy verge – shades of what often happens these days where I live!

At this time of the year the Erythrina trees are coming into bloom and today I was fortunate enough to see both the Erythrina caffra and the Erythrina lysistemon.

A black-headed heron and a black wildebeest added to the joy of spending the best part of the day away from home.