Today was a mammoth day of travelling: an almost 600km round trip very kindly driven entirely by John Burrows of Buffelskloof , with Sandie providing an extra pair of eyes. The aim was to find Kniphofia albescens , which he had seen in the uplands near Piet Retief some years ago. If that was successful... Read more..

Yesterday was an exhilarating day except for the lack of pokers: a good long walk, many beautiful flowers and the tension of trying to out run a thunderstorm. It had felt worthwhile because I had come across one poker right at the furthest extreme of the walk. However, that feeling was rapidly taken... Read more..

Safely back home, it is now time to assess the expedition and write up the reports. A first analysis of the results makes very pleasing reading. Of the 52 taxa recorded for the Flora of Southern Africa (48 species and 4 subspecies or varieties) I managed to see 23 in flower and another 8 in the wild... Read more..