"If you're looking for a memorial to him, look around. These slopes and the area around are one of the world's largest and best known stocks of native flora, and this is the best memory of him!" - such is the inscription carved on the gravestone to the first Director of Kirstenbosch Botanic Gardens, Professor Harold Pearson.
Founded in 1913, Kirstenbosch is located on the eastern slopes of Table Mountain in Cape Town. It consists of landscaped gardens of native species of flora, with the Lisbeck River running through it, and natural forest extending to the lower slopes. Kirstenbosch covers an area of 528 hectares, of which only 36 hectares are cared for by garden staff, the rest of the garden is a natural flora reserve.
Only 4,700 of the approximately 20,000 species of native South African plants are found here, and 50% of the peninsula's floral wealth.
Among the interesting areas of the garden that visitors are keen to see is the Cycad Amphitheatre, here most of the species of rare plant species found in South Africa are found. Much of the upper slopes of the famous Protea Garden are covered with shimmering silverwoods - the evergreen silverwood, 5-7 metres tall, is a rare and endangered species due to the high demand for timber and mass logging of its forests. The JV Mathews Rock Garden (named after the first curator) contains succulents, aloes and other plant species. The Erica Garden and Pelargonium Koppie are also very beautiful.
You can take refuge in the shade of camphor and fig trees planted by Cecil Rhodes in 1898. Nearby there is a small patch of wild almonds planted by Jan van Riebeeck in 1660, at the time of the Dutch settlers.
Kirstenbosch is home to the head office of the National Botanical Institute, which runs a national network of gardens and associated research institutes. One of these, Compton Herbarium, sits at the top of an avenue of camphor trees in the heart of Kirstenbosch. Named in honour of a former director, it is dedicated to scientific research.
All paths in the main botanical garden of Kirstenbosch are hard surfaced. More recently, the 128-metre Boomslang (Afrikaans for "tree snake") air bridge was opened, with a maximum height of about 11 metres, which runs through the arboretum. It was designed by architect Mark Thomas. There are also two special routes for the disabled and three trails designed for a three-hour vigorous walk of up to 6 kilometres.
The fragrant garden next door has a fine collection of aromatic plants, with explanatory signs written in Braille and large print for the visually impaired.
Kirstenbosch can be visited in spring and summer, when the gardens are ablaze with Namaqualand chamomile, and winter is the best time to see the amazingly beautiful protea. Visitors can purchase their choice of native plants, books and souvenirs in the small shop at the exit of Kirstenbosch Botanical Gardens and enjoy a cup of flavoured coffee in the outdoor restaurant.
