After our mountain fire, flowers

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

November 2009 we returned to our burnt mountain. Since the March fire we had winter rain, and the mountain slopes were green, with unbroken drifts of colour from scarlet Watsonia. With the shrubs gone, annuals and bulbs celebrate their field day. Gradually the perennials and trees in the kloofs will grow back and crowd them out, until the next fire.

Ficinia radiata

Sunshine and firelight in the Groot Winterhoek

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

Jack at Sequoia Gardens and I were talking about South African indigenous plants with interesting leaf colour. I said grey is easy, but gold and wine-dark are exotic. Jack reminded me that proteas do leaf colour. That was the nudge we needed to go walk on our mountain. Timed it for the Leucadendron to perform.

Sunshine
Leucadendron salignum female

Berg River Marathon at Iron Bridge

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

For my nephew Rob Clegg, who won the race in 1987. Still paddling on YouTube! In 2014 the Berg River Marathon will be 16-19 July. Since we'll have other plans then, I'm returning the pictures from 2011. The weather forecast for 2014 is mostly sunny but COLD.   

Berg River Marathon 2011

Striped mice and snowy mountains

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

Chunks of grubbed out grape vines are arranged here to give wildlife, lizards and snakes… a place to live, to escape the cat. Looking out of the bedroom window, from where we can photograph in peace, I saw a striped mouse enjoying the early sunshine on a winter morning. Very alert, he dived back among the branches at the slightest sound or movement. He is conveniently at home next to the overspill from the bird feeder. Rhabdomys pumilio, the striped mouse lives in our fynbos and renosterveld.

Striped mouse looking this way

Malgas lilies and Moutonshoek

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

When the mains burst, we are prepared for no running water and Regular Service will resume shortly. I used nearly a litre of water to brush my teeth and wash my face. Focused my mind on Third World women or children who may spend 8 hours a day fetching water.

Malgas lilies near Moutonshoek in April 2012

Fire on our mountain in March 2009

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

Updated 22 December 2017 for Hessea monticola

If you live, as we do, and did in Camps Bay where mountain / wild / forest fires are a part of life. Then you will recognise that rising sense of unease. It was March 2009 and I could smell smoke – not a farmer burning the stubble (sadly they still do, despite global weirding), nor an insane neighbour burning garden waste or autumn leaves. The light was strange, hazy to the sun, because there was so much smoke in the air. Where was the fire? People shared what they knew, from the farmer up on the mountain and nature conservation officials to TV and newspapers.

Where's the fire?

Green house, grey water and wind turbines

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

Is it a "green" house? Brownfield (in town) not destroying nature. Where the infrastructure is already available – water, electricity, phone/internet(!), sewerage. Face brick (to avoid painting). Slate floor, natural stone from Mazista. Solar powered hot water. The electric geyser, to supplement the solar panels in winter, is on a time switch. Our metal roof is powder coated. Insulation in the roof is green (literally) recycled plastic.

Hopefield Wind Farm

Nguni cattle each one different

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

Think of the pictures in a child’s book, of a cow. White with black spots. Or maybe brown. Now think of Nguni cattle, every cow has her own pattern. Nguni pictures remain, across the years, my most popular downloads.

Nguni herd with Olifantsriver Mountains in 2011

Citrusdal Victorian spa

by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

We had lived in Porterville for three years, but only in December 2009 did we discover, to our unexpected surprise, this Victorian gem. We were out to lunch celebrating a wedding anniversary.

At Citrusdal Victorian spa in December 2009

Travelling from Porterville

by Diana Studer
- gardening for biodiversity in Porterville, near Cape Town in South Africa

He took our header photo in June as we walked thru vineyards, wheat fields or orchards, with horses, cattle and sheep.

Railway line in Porterville June 2011

The Story of Elephant’s Eye

Chapter 8 
Why Porterville?

Cape mountain leopard cub at Mied Se Berg

At the end of August as the Western Cape battled thru fierce winter weather, my husband returned to Driehoek. Dr Quinton Martins of the Cape Leopard Trust and Jurg were still hoping to catch the wary Spot and replace the battery in her GPS collar.

Nieuwoudt Pass between Citrusdal and Clanwilliam

From the snow-capped Groot Winterhoek

 by Diana Studer

- gardening for biodiversity

Edited in August 2014, when we returned for sunshine and firelight from the Leucadendrons.

Whether it’s our hiking boots following the trail. Or the hooves of the grysbok following its path thru the wilderness. Or the water from the winter rain, and melting snow – in the boggy bits a shallow skin of water, which is, barely perceptibly, moving. We three along the line of least resistance, erode the paths in the Groot Winterhoek Wilderness Area.

Groot Winterhoek with snow

Cape mountain leopard 3 hours later

As I write Cape Town is locked in the fourth glacial cold front bringing sub-polar air from Antarctica, with freaky hail storms. Inspiring a Chip Snaddon cartoon about bi-polar bears off Cape Town. While Europe is immersed in floods. In Switzerland young birds are battling the cold and wet. There are not enough insects to feed the fledglings and it will be a few good years before the bird population recovers.

Uitkyk Pass looking towards Algeria Forestry Station

The elusive Cape mountain leopard Spot

When I wrote on the 24th of November, the weatherman promised ‘very cold, wet and windy conditions are expected to set in over the north-western high ground’ in the Cederberg. Sutherland has had MINUS 2C in November! Jurg was hiking at Driehoek as October turned to November volunteering with the Cape Leopard Trust and helping to monitor the traps.

The Cape Leopard Trust

Caracal at Driehoek for the Cape Leopard Trust

It’s been 3 months since Jurg last went to Driehoek volunteering to monitor traps for the Cape Leopard Trust. This time, the signal went off near Quinton’s base at Matjiesriver. 

Jurg with sedated caracal
Photo by Dawie Burger of Driehoek

The team met at the walk thru trap for caracal. Jurg wanted to take a picture of the caracal IN the trap – but Dr. Quinton Martins was adamant. ‘We have to get the caracal out of the cage, before he hurts himself!’ First the welfare of the caracal.

Wildflower Wednesday in the Groot Winterhoek

As usual, when we hike in the Groot Winterhoek Wilderness Area, we were the only people there. The only car parked. We did meet a group of young people being trained to maintain the trails.

His grass, backlit with bokeh

Our fynbos is threatened by global warming. Proteas, ericas, bulbs and daisies. The plants could retreat up the mountain slopes, but they are used to paddling their toes in the mountain streams. Those mountain streams flow down to the Voelvlei Dam and supply Cape Town with tap water. Or not! If global warming bites.

Patch the Cape leopard and his collar at work

Jurg has been to Driehoek once more with the Cape Leopard Trust. Back in February he saw this klipspringer family.

Male klipspringer

Mother and baby klipspringer

Caught a Cape mountain leopard

After midnight the phone rings. My heart sinks. But it is Quinton – Tell Jurg, we've caught A LEOPARD!! Jurg falls out of bed and in one and a half hours he has joined the others at Driehoek. Driving carefully to avoid two grysbok, a duiker, and rabbits who run along the road.

Waiting with the Cape Leopard Trust at Driehoek

The young Cape mountain leopard is in good hands – Dr Quinton Martins researcher at the Cape Leopard Trust, Dr Marc Walton the on-call vet (that’s animal not war) from Ceres,

Wilderness camps with the Cape Leopard Trust

Drive away from our home in Porterville, North towards Clanwilliam and up into the Cederberg mountains, where endangered Cape leopards live. Since September last year Jurg has been volunteering with the Cape Leopard Trust. In January he went to help refresh the Toktokkie Camp before this year’s children arrived for their wilderness camps.

Klipbokberg on the road to Ceres

Cape mountain leopard on camera

The Ungardener returned to Driehoek in October, still hoping to help trap Spot, the Cape mountain leopard.

Driehoek dam

While Dr Quinton Martins of the Cape Leopard Trust has traps set, he needs help monitoring 24/7. That is where the Ungardener comes in, as a volunteer.