Kirstenbosch Botanical Garden, Cape Town, South Africa

Last updated on April 15th, 2021

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden is on our tour itinerary for tomorrow, but I’m guessing that the tour will not allow enough time for me at the garden (I am known for being able to spend an inordinate amount of time in gardens), so we have come on our own for the afternoon. This way I can stay as long as I would like.

That’s a good thing, because there is a lot to see.

Of course, what I really want to see is protea in bloom. (It is one of my goals for this trip.)

Obviously I came to the right place!

I didn’t really realize how varied protea can be. There is a wide variety, many of which are spectacular. That’s true even though the King Protea have not yet opened. (My new goal is to find a King Protea in bloom.)

Kristenbosch is located in a small botanical region known as the Cape Floral Kingdom. This area is characterized by its fynbos vegetation and protea are common here. There are only five other floral kingdoms in the world – the Cape Floral Kingdom being both the smallest and the richest, with the highest known concentration of plant species. For a plant lover like me, the unique vegetation of this area is a key reason to visit. It would be easy to spend even more time here, however, the day is quickly slipping away.

Hopefully I’ll get to spend more time here tomorrow.

2011 South Africa Travels

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