One man had a dream in Tshwane’s Mamelodi – and helped preserve a natural gem overlooked by botanists
I got ready for my first ever CREW field trip, hoping that the rain would hold off long enough for us to find our target species: Melolobium subspicatum, from the pea family, and Habenaria kraenzliniana, from the orchid family.
We delve into the history of local botanical citizen science and how those roots are directly connected to BotSoc and CREW. We also find out from active iNaturalist members why they find recording nature so rewarding.
Our guide to gardening for bees gives tips on growing beautiful indigenous plants that create a thriving ecosystem for pollinators. Insects are a vital
We chat to plant ecologist Dr Pat Holmes about some principles behind ecosystem restoration and how we can play an active role in restoring South Africa’s many damaged ecosystems.
The Botanical Society of South Africa has a summer challenge for you: to create new sunny memories in South Africa’s 11 wonderful national botanical gardens.
Encouraging children to enjoy gardening allows them to have fun outdoors while also learning about nature and biodiversity.
Coastal dunes can be particularly harsh environments. Throughout the year, they are exposed to blistering sun and strong, salt-laden winds that also carry highly abrasive sand grains.
Wetlands are ecosystems that contain quantities of water, usually providing a home for special vegetation communities and a wide variety of wildlife that depend on them for survival. Some wetlands flood throughout the year but others flood only during the wettest seasons.
We look at plants on the edge of extinction, with an overview presentation by South African National Biodiversity Institute’s Domitilla Raimondo, with discussion and Q&A moderated by BotSoc’s Rupert Koopman.
For easy-care, colourful and dramatic planting, grow indigenous South African succulents in your garden or containers. Where would you look to
The climate crisis and the need to feed and house the world’s growing human population are bombarding ecosystems and biodiversity. Two in every
If you need a botanical New Year resolution, get to know the South African Red List – a global first. What makes a favourite website?
The silent battle on our savannas between majestic trees and determined grasses has intrigued us for a long time – and meant that plenty of us have overlooked the non-grassy herbaceous plants
Summer is wild orchid season in the Cape so challenge yourself this festive season to look for the Cape’s signature orchid. You can choose the tough way or the gentle way.
Give a gift that replaces memories of being isolated from family and friends in lockdown and unable to make the most of our green places with green moments of joy and green memories to treasure.
That bare expanse of red sand gave the Red Desert Nature Reserve its name. Jointly owned by the Ray Nkonyeni Municipality and a local family, it was declared a nature reserve in 2015, facilitated by the Botanical Society of South Africa.
Ingwehumbe Nature Reserve is a Botanical Society facilitated Biodiversity Stewardship conservation area that was officially declared on 15 December 2019.
Alien invasive plants are non-indigenous plant species that have been introduced (usually by humans) into a country and/or habitat outside the ecosystems in which they naturally occur.
Highly skilled GIS professionals are in demand across a variety of sectors in South Africa including biodiversity conservation.
Also known as the Klein Karoo, South Africa’s Little Karoo region is a semiarid intermontane basin that is located between the Langeberg, Outeniqua and Tsitsikamma mountains to the south and the Swartberg mountains to the north.
Rolling grasslands dotted with patches of eastern mistbelt forest, wetlands and rocky outcrops characterise the Drakensberg foothills where Bosch Berg Nature Reserve
A parasitic plant is defined as a plant that derives all of its nutrients from another plant through various different adaptations.
Nestled at the foot of the Soetmuisberg, this beautiful village is located between the towns of Caledon and Bredasdorp surrounded by rolling farmland and highly biodiverse Overberg Renosterveld vegetation.
