Observatory wetland restoration project
Corridor contribution
- To support planting of primarily locally indigenous vegetation (note: we don't expect the garden to currently be there, but the caretaker is willing to work toward this goal).
- To work on removing alien and invasive species.
- To periodically provide updates on the status of the garden.
- When possible, to share seeds or cuttings from the garden's indigenous plants with other members of our network.
This is garden ID pending in our corridor.
Description
In 2023, the Friends of the Liesbeek (FoL) undertook a strategic project in Observatory. a degraded wetland, alongside the Liesbeek River in Observatory, was scraped of invasive Kikuyu Grass. A small channel was excavated; linking the wetland to the Liesbeek River (previously separated by an elevated, artificial berm). The channel allows water to flow from the river into the wetland during periods of high flow/flooding.
The scraped patch was then planted out with over 50 species of locally indigenous wetland fynbos species; including a few red list Erica margaritacea and Diastella proteoides. Other introduced species included: Athanasia trifurcata, Cliffortia feruginea, Cliffortia strobilifera, Ehrarta villosa, Elegia tectorum, Ficinia capitella, Freylinia lanceolata, Helichrysum cymosum, Helichrysum pandurifolium, Imperata cylindrica, Isolepsis prolifera, Juncus effusus, Juncus lomatophyllus, Lobelia anceps, Melianthus major, Mentha longifolia capensis, Passerina corymbosa, Pelargonium grossularioides, Serruria aemula var. foeniculaceae, Ursinia sp., Haemanthus sp. (coccineus), Orphium frutescens, Anthospermum aethiopicum, Carex clavata, Carpobrotus edulis, Cliffortia ericifolia, Cliffortia hirta, Felicia aethiopica, Ficinia nodosa, Helichrysum patulum, Juncus capensis, Lampranthus reptans, Lampranthus stenus, Leonotis leonurus, Monopsis lutea, Nidorella foetida, Pelargonium capitatum, Pelargonium cucculatus tabulare, Plecostachys serpyllifolia, Psoralea glaucina, Psoralea pinnata, Senecio halimifolius, Kniphofia uvaria, Chasmanthe floribunda, Zantedeschia aethiopica.
Plants were primarily sourced from Fynbos Life nursery and from the City of Cape Town's nursery.
Registered current species
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