There were just five of us willing to tackle the steep slopes of the Rossmin protected area and we traveled there in one vehicle, parking in our customary spot under a large mango tree. We headed coast-ward for a short distance, finding
Grewia occidentalis, Rhynchosia carribaea and
Chamaecrista mimosoides along the side of the road. Kate and Anne found an intriguing shrub, obviously one of the
Apiaceae, and after some discussion we agreed this was
Heteromorpha arborescens var collina; unlike the other vars of this species, this one has simple leaves.
 |
| Rhynchosia carribaea |
 |
| Chamaecrista mimosoides |
 |
| Grewia occidentalis |
 |
| Heteromorpha arborescens var collina |
From there we headed up a slope through tall, unburned grass finding a few
Eulophia ovalis hidden discretely in the grass. When we reached the brow of the hill we found that fire had just reached there from the other side. There were many flowers in this section, the most impressive being a multitude of
Kniphofia coddiana. There were several
Lotus discolor shrubs and some tall
Senecio albanensis var doroniciflorus.
 |
| Eulophia ovalis |
 |
| Lotus discolor |
 |
| A host of Kniphofia coddiana |
 |
| Senecio albanensis var doroniciflorus |
 |
| Searching for the next interesting flower (photo Gail B-W) |
 |
| What is that? (photo Gail B-W) |
We moved down the steep slope towards the Umzimkulu River, weaving our way around the
Kniphofia coddiana spikes, stopping briefly at a
Cynoglossum lanceolatum and then started finding some yellow-flowered
Eulophia hians var inaequalis. There were also
Linum thunbergii, Lithospermum papillosum, Maesa alnifolia, some tall
Tulbaghia ludwigiana and an intertwined
Trochomeria hookeri in flower.
 |
| Cynoglossum lanceolatum fruit |
 |
| Eulophia hians var inaequalis |
 |
| Linum thunbergii |
 |
| Lithospermum papillosum |
 |
| Maesa alnifolia |
 |
| Tulbaghia ludwigiana |
 |
| Trochomeria hookeri |
A bit further down we found a very attractive orange form of
Tritonia gladiolaris, as well as
Senegalia caffra, Rhynchosia sordida and
Aspilia natalensis.
 |
| Tritonia gladiolaris (orange form) |
 |
| Senegalia (Acacia) caffra |
 |
| Rhynchosia sordida |
 |
| Aspilia natalensis |
As we scrambled back up the slope we saw a sparsely flowering Tecomaria capensis, a small cluster of Hybanthis capensis and at the entrance to a forested section, Calpurnia aurea. In the deep shade of the forest we found a Gymnosporia rubra in flower, its tiny flowers presenting us with a photographic challenge.
 |
| Tecomaria capensis |
 |
| Hybanthis capensis |
 |
| Calpurnia aurea |
 |
| Gymnosporia rubra |
Back out in open, burned grassland we found some
Argyrolobium stipulaceum in fruit,
Berkheya insignis, Eriosema cordatum, Hibiscus aethiopicus and two
Hilliardiellas, H. oligocephala and
H. pinifolia.
 |
| Argyrolobium stipulaceum |
 |
| Berkheya insignis |
 |
| Eriosema cordatum |
 |
| Hibiscus aethiopicus |
 |
| Hilliardiella oligocephala |
 |
| Hilliardiella pinifolia |
There were
Rhynchosia confusa, Tephrosia macropoda, and
Vigna unguiculata along this section of grassland and as we worked our way back towards the vehicle, we found
Zizyphus mucronata, the parasitic
Agelanthus gracilis and
Hippobromus pauciflorus.
 |
| Rhynchosia confusa |
 |
| Tephrosia macropoda |
 |
| Vigna unguiculata |
 |
| Zizyphus mucronata |
 |
| Agelanthus gracilis |
 |
| Hippobromus pauciflorus |
Participants: Anne S, Gail B-W, Graham G, Kate G, Tracy T.
