GEORGE NEWS - Ken Gie, a volunteer of the Garden Route Botanical Garden, is writing a series of articles in celebration of the garden's 25th anniversary in November. The garden features a propagation nursery that is the lifeline of the garden, and an herbarium that helps preserve DNA of rare plants.
The herbarium
An herbarium is a systematically arranged collection of dried plant specimens catalogued for the study by professional and amateur botanists. It plays an essential part in sourcing DNA from rare and extinct species and allows skilled horticulturists to conserve and restore plants that are threatened by extinction.
Volunteers scoured the mountains and valleys looking for rare and endangered plants. Di Turner spear-headed a group called Outramps and they worked with another group called Crew who launched searches for rare plants. The plants would be propagated and dried specimens added to the herbarium’s collection for preservation.
Yvette van Wyk, a Botanical Society (BotSoc) member, played a leading role in securing space in the George Museum to establish the herbarium.
This is where the Southern Cape Herbarium originated and in 1995 the herbarium relocated to the Audrey Moriarty Environmental Centre next to the Botanical Garden.
More than 10 000 dried plants from our region are catalogued and stored in the herbarium and is run entirely by volunteers. It is indeed a huge asset for the garden and scientific study.
The propagation nursery
The major income generator for the Botanical Garden is from the indigenous plant nursery next to the Moriarty Centre.
To buy in plants from local nurseries would strain the garden’s cash flow and make the garden’s nursery uncompetitive in price. It was necessary to propagate plants in the garden for resale via the nursery.
Once again, the BotSoc stepped in and sponsored the erection of a propagation nursery which needed to be fenced off, water laid on and sections of it covered with shade netting. Later heated beds and mist sprays were installed.
Here cuttings are taken from the “mother stock”, placed in a potting medium and nurtured until roots develop. Seeds are harvested from fynbos plants and also placed in a potting medium.
Plants are collected from sites where there are going to be developments, this action being a direct effort in saving our fast-dwindling fynbos vegetation.
The major income generator for the Botanical Garden is from the indigenous plant nursery.
On Wednesday 24 July 2013 the inauguration of the new propagation nursery took place when Zaitoon Rabaney, executive director of the BotSoc, cut the ribbon with trust chairman Robin Clarke and other members of BotSoc in attendance.
Unfortunately, Ena McIntyre could not attend so her husband Bob stood in for her. Her absence was a pity because the propagation nursery was her initiative.
About three years ago the size of the propagation nursery was doubled and funding contributions came from Prof Adré Boshoff, famous horticulturist, Keith Kirsten and other members of the public. In 2023 a function, celebrating its tenth anniversary, was well attended by volunteers, trustees and other interested parties.
Apart from a small handful of garden staff, the propagation nursery is maintained and stocked up by volunteers who religiously attend to the tasks involving the propagation process under the professional guidance of Doug Cooke who is also a volunteer and experienced horticulturist.
Doug has trebled the output of the nursery making it economically viable and ensuring that there is sufficient stock for the indigenous nursery to sell – the funding lifeline of the garden.
If you make an appointment with Doug, he will show you all the tricks of the trade in maximising the success rate in propagation.
It is a fascinating and highly technical process to create new rooting plants from cuttings and seeds. The atmospheric conditions and soil content has to be just right for the cuttings and seeds to flourish.
Birds of prey are also seen in the Botanical Garden.
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