Flower in South Africa

Clivia

This is an indigenous plant to the Eastern Cape, KwaZulu-Natal and eastern Mpumalanga.  It’s easy to grown and it’s also grown overseas.  The orange clusters of flowers, tells us that spring is on the way.  This plants like sun but can be planted in shady areas, under trees or on a shady stoep (that is Afrikaans for veranda). The other colours that it comes in, is pale yellow and a deep reddish orange.

 

Clivia

Dietes Grandiflora

They are iris-like flowers, white flowers with their yellow and mauve markings.  It’s really something if you plant a lot of these plants in your garden.  The flower last a day but new flowers open up continuously.  It can grow in dry, shady or sunny areas.

 

Dietes grandiflora

Arum Lily

This plant during winter and spring in the Cape area, as the cape gets winter rainfall.  In other parts of the country it grows in spring and summer when it usually the rainy period of the country.  They have beautiful white flowers with long, broad, dark green leaves.  The plant loves damp soil and shaded areas of the garden.  They are long lasting cut flowers.

 

Arum lily

Strelizia

This is a vibrant orange and blue flower.  It’s is very unusual as the flowers look very much like a crane with a crown of feather.  It’s one of South Africa’s icons as it even appears on the 50 cent coil.  Easy to grow, just water the ground when it’s dry and keep the soil well mulched.  It has other names such as the crane, as explained and the bird of paradise as it also resembles that bird in flight.

Strelizia

 Vygies

This little plant is indigenous to the south-western cape.  It comes in many colours from yellow to oranges, from pink to purple.    They can be planted in a rock garden or dry areas because the plant does not need to be watered very often.  The succulents are also easily propagated from cuttings.

 

Bokbaai Vygies are exported.  These plants are grown worldwide for their dazzling range of colours like yellow, cream, pink, magenta, and orange.  It is a winter succulent which forms a low ground cover.  The leaves are spoon-shaped and the surface cells on the leaves are modified for water storage.

Vygies

Red hot poker

These are upright plants with bright flame-coloured flowers. There are different species of this plant that flower in different season.  Again plant a lot of them; it is truly a spectacular site when they flower.  They love water and need to be water regularly in summer and feed them fertilizer to ensure a good showing.  The flower attracts sunbirds to the area has the flower is tubular and is well suit for the sunbirds long beak to feed from.

 

Red hot poker

Pincushion protea

The protea is indigenous to the south-western Cape, but could grow anywhere in the country under the right conditions.  The roundish shrub is about 1.5m high.  It’s a low maintenance plant and the flowers can be dried and last like this for a very long time.

Pincushion protea

 

Morning glories

They are climbers with slender stems, and heart-shaped leaves.  They have trumpet-shaped flower and come in several colours, pink, purple-blue, magenta or even white.  Every day they will re-open to the kiss of the sun.  The vines can grow up to 15 feet in one season and can self-seed fairly easy.

The flowers are in bloom from early spring to the first frost.  They attract butterflies and hummingbirds to the garden.

Morning glories

Daffodils

Daffodils started growing in early spring.  They come from bulbs that must be planted around June.  They are one of the earliest plants to flower.  It has a trumpet shape flower and come in a variety of different colours and shape.  The traditional daffodils are sunny yellow.

 

Daffodils

Tulips

These plants originally came from Turkey.  The tulip was cultivated in the Netherlands from the 16^th century.  They grow best in cold climates but there are hybrids that can be grown in South Africa.  Tulips love cold soil so the best time to plant them would be from March to June.  Plant them in a place that has morning sun only.  The tulips do well if planted in containers.

Tulips

African daisy

These indigenous flowers carpet the bare veldt of the south-western and north-western Cape and Namaqualand in spring, and the flowers are so prolific that the leaves are almost invisible when the blooms appear. Dimorphotheca are members of the large Asteraceae family, which includes asters, daisies, and sunflowers, and their daisy-like flowers will attract butterflies to your garden. They come in the traditional bright orange and yellow flowers as well as many pastel shades and pure white.

The African daisy is used as low cover around shrubs or as the focal point in mass plantings. They also make beautiful borders, so sow them in mass into large borders, beds and rockeries for hassle-free winter and spring colour. These sun lovers will only open their petals in sunlight and remain steadfastly closed at night or on overcast days.

African daisy

Cosmos

Cosmos are beautiful summer flowering annuals native to Mexico, where most of the species occur, as well as the United States, as far north as the Olympic Peninsula in Washington; and Central and South America, as far south as Paraguay. One species, the commonly called “Mexican Aster” (Cosmos bipinnatus) escaped gardens and naturalized itself across much of the eastern United States and eastern Canada, growing abundantly on disturbed land besides roads, and in fields and waste areas. It is also widespread over the high eastern plains of South Africa, where it was introduced via contaminated horse feed imported from Argentina during the Anglo-Boer War. In South Africa they flower religiously around Easter time, transforming open fields and roadways with their masses of flowers, and the flowering can continue until the first frosts.

Cosmos

Sutera
Sutera remains firm favourites with gardeners around the world for their ease of growth and profusion of flowers throughout spring and summer. They are hardy, vigorous, low-growing plants which can spread +-50 to 60cm, while only reaching a height of +-15 to 20cm. Plant breeders have developed many new and improved strains of Sutera which not only flower even more profusely, but also have larger blooms, with some varieties even sporting lovely yellow foliage. They are available in beautifully delicate shades of blue and pink to lavender and white. Some of the new cultivars include: Sutera” Snowstorm”; Sutera “Blue Showers” and Sutera “Lavender Showers”

Sutera

 Iceland Poppies

If it’s the “wow” from flowers you are looking for, then Iceland Poppies (Papaver naudicaule) are just the thing for you. Planted in autumn temperatures, they will help transform your garden into a winter wonderland. While some gardeners are loath to buy seedlings when they can’t see any blooms on the little plants, this shouldn’t be a concern. Poppies offer their best when planted early in the season, soon providing blooms that will keep on appearing right through to late spring.

Iceland poppies

Sweet peas

Sweetly scented sweet peas are a must for the autumn garden, not only for their gorgeous smelling and looking blooms in the garden, but also to bring a little of the garden into your home when it’s a bit chilly to spend time outside because sweet peas make excellent cut flowers.

Sweet peas

Kingfisher Daisies

Blue is a sought after colour amongst gardeners because it is quite rare, especially a true blue shade. Kingfisher Daisies, with their masses of striking sky-blue and sunny yellow flower heads fit the bill, catching the eye wherever they are planted. There are approximately 84 species of Felicia, and South Africa is blessed with about 79. This little plant did not go unnoticed and was one of the earliest species used in horticulture, first being introduced to Europe in the middle of the eighteenth century; it also features on one of our stamps. Sky-blue, pale blue, violet-blue, pink and white flowered forms are available, as well as a variegated variety and a beautiful annual which is entirely blue.

Kingfisher daisies