Smedmore 12 January 2023

With the earth scorching we decided to seek refuge in the Smedmore forest in the Umtamvuna Nature Reserve.  It was a special occasion as it was Uschi’s 80^th birthday.  Simon had suggested we botanise there as it was full of endemics and this would be a very special place to take Uschi on this surprise outing.  She has been a great teacher to us all.   We arrived at Smedmore which is renown for his large biting ants and Simon was engaging in a conversation with Uschi about the identification of some branches or “takkie” he had found after a recent botanising hike.  The branch remained a mystery and dear Uschi with incredible knowledge she simply turned to him and gently said, “I am the student’. 

After having our tea and cup cakes we hugged the forest edge and found our opening into the forest, first walking past Alepidea pendunuclaris that looked like a galaxy of tip-ex white stars.  Uschi explained that one of the ways to differentiate between Alepedia penduncularis and Alepedia natalensis was in the size of the side petals on its head.   Alepedia natalensis’s petals are needle like and small.

Habenaria dives held us captivated for a while whilst Uschi inspected to see if it had spurs as it can be quite confusing as it can look like Striga.  It has the most unfortunate common name that being the Death Orchid.  Who can even come up with a name like that! A stone’s throw away from it was the stunning Orthochilus ensatus, its cambium yellow head stood proudly just below the knee.  This orchid is rare to locally frequent in open grassland, grassy areas in coastal bushveld and is pollinated by scarab beetles.  There are two forms of Orthochilus ensatus, the yellow forms flowers between December and January whilst the white form flowers between August and December.

Agapanthus grew in the grass land but with the sun beathing on our backs we didn’t observe the grassland for too long and Anne lead us into the enchanted forest. It was cool and quiet.  Having received abundant rain for days on end the forest floor was spongy and the trees centuries old.  Moss, lichen, ferns and fungi grew both on rocks and old fallen trunks.  The rare Streptocarphus formosa grew on the side of a rocks, close to where “Joan’s Cave” was which Uschi reminisced about and was over-joyed when she unexpectedly found it.  She said it was the best birthday she had ever had. The boulders were colossal, it was impossible to get leaves from some trees where their crowns were so high it felt like they were up in the galaxy.  Simon who is very agile climbed up trees with ease and kindly brought back leaves so that C.R.E.W. could help ID the tree on the ground. 

The group had split as one can go no-where very slowly when it comes to analysing a leaf and Uschi had a little pocket torch which she took out and shone beneath the leaf of Pavetta bowekeri which revealed its gland dots.  Simon’s loop too had a built-in light, how magnificent it was to look at the details of a leaf or a flower and pick up what the eye can not without the aid of a strong magnifying glass.  Pavetta bowkeri and Pavetta galpinii were flowering bride white in the forest. 

Chionanthus peglarae had us studying it’s leaves for quite some time and the groups voices became more and more distant as they explored further down the forest, we were all having so much fun.  Sometimes botanising can become quite a game.  It can get very exciting. 

Clausena anisata is also known as Horsewood, Maggot-killer and Perdepis! The leaves are strongly and unpleasantly scented when crushed.  Interestingly enough the leaves are used to flavour curries.  That’s a useful tip to remember.

A massive Zanthoxylum davyi also known as the Forest knobwood grew in this montane forest, its bark has conspicuous thorn-tipped knobs so tree huggers this is not the tree to hug.  This tree was well over a century. Simon had observed that poaching of antelope must be rife as the trees that normally would be browsed had no signs at all of been nibbled.

Quietly an owl glided through the forest as we reluctantly made our way out back into the scorching sun before heading home with everyone agreeing that it was a forest we wanted to explore rather sooner than later. It had been a happy day and it felt as if we had been transported into another world. 

Streptocarpus formosus
GESNERIACEAE

Status and Criteria

:  Rare

Status and Criteria

:  Rare

Alepidea peduncularis
APIACEAE

Habenaria dives 
Death Orchid 
ORCHIDACEAE

Orthochilus ensatus
ORCHIDACEAE

Uschi delightted to have found "Joan's Cave".

C.R.E.W. botanising in the Smedmore forest.

Ancient roots of a tree.

Colossal boulders

Simon getting a sample of a Cussonia for Uschi to ID from high above.

Tracy showing the scale of this ancient tree.

Pavetta galpinii 
Large-leaved Forest Brides-bush
RUBIACEAE

Pavetta galpinii (gland dots)

Beneath the leaf

Chionanthus peglerae
Giant Pock-ironwood
OLEACEAE

Clausena anisata
Perdepis
RUTACEAE

  Zanthoxylum davyi
Forest Knobwood
RUTACEAE

Teclea natalensis 
Slender Cherry-orange
RUTACEAE

Strychnos mitis
Yellow Bitterberry
LOGANIACEAE

  

Maytenus undata
Koko tree
CELASTRACEAE

Oxyanthus speciosus subsp. gerrardii

Southern Whipstick Loquat
RUBIACEAE

Maytenus undata
Koko tree
CELASTRACEAE
Photo of the underside of the leaves.

Keetia gueinzii
Climbing Turkey-berry
RUBIACEAE

Keetia gueinzii
Climbing Turkey-berry
RUBIACEAE

Isoglossa cooperi
ACANTHACEAE

Dianthus mooiensis
Frilly Carnation
CARYOPHYLLACEAE

Atalaya alata
Lebombo Krantz Ash
SAPINDACEAE

Encephalartos villosus
Poor Man's Cycad 
ZAMIACEAE

Garcinia gerrardii
Forest Mangosteen
CLUSIACEAE

Smedmore

Pondoland C.R.E.W.

Tracy Taylor, Simon Hicks, Uschi Teicher Alf Hayter,
Maggie Abbott & Gail Bowers-Winters

"Live as if you were to die tomorrow.  Learn as if you were to live forever" - Mahatma Gandhi

Gail's office - signal is found at the edge of the gorge so in order for this blog to happen one's wifi, laptop need to be charged and determination to create this blog and send it out can only be done with either a yoga mat or camping equipment.  Life's full of challenges. 

Technical difficulties made it not possible to link the photo's to the stories.  My appologies.

Gail Bowers-Winters