Shrublands, such as the fynbos of the western and southern Cape, are not known as an Aloe paradise, yet a handful of species are indigenous to the region, including the fire-adapted Aloe plicatilis. Pictured here is an area near Kommetjie, in the Cape Peninsula, which is rich in a multitude of shrubs, including several Erica (heather) species.
The Cape Floristic Region (CFR), also known as the Cape Floristic Kingdom or simply ‘Capensis’, is situated at the southernmost tip of Africa. It stretches in an L-shape from the vicinity of Vanrhynsdorp and Nieuwoudtville in the northwest along the west coast southwards towards Cape Point, a distance of about 250 km, and then in broken strips and patches eastwards to near Grahamstown, a distance of about 800 km. In the extreme east the CFR peters out into and mixes with subtropical thicket, coastal forest, grassland and karroid vegetation.
Covering an area of about 90 000 km2, the CFR is the smallest of the world’s six Floristic Kingdoms, but has the richest and most diverse flora by far, a total of over 9 000 species. Furthermore, most species (more than 6 000) are endemic (strictly confined) to the region. Most of these are associated with a dense type of evergreen shrubland, known locally as fynbos. This vegetation type is very characteristic of the CFR, and the region is sometimes referred to as the Fynbos Biome.
The climate prevalent in the CFR is generally described as Mediterranean (see page 48). This means that the winters are mild and wet and the summers are hot and rather dry, although especially towards the east, thunderstorms are not uncommon during the warmer months of the year. Frost is restricted to the inland valleys, and snowfalls to the higher mountains. Mist moving overland from the Atlantic Ocean frequently occurs over the west coast of South Africa.
The nutrient-poor status of the sandy soils mainly associated with quartzitic sandstone mountains of the CFR is the most outstanding pedological feature of the region. Fynbos is fire-prone; indeed, the regeneration of many species, especially the so-called reseeders, is impeded if fire is excluded for too long.
Apart from three well-known families – Proteaceae (proteas, pincushions, conebushes), Ericaceae (ericas or heaths) and Restionaceae (restios or reeds) – that occur in abundance in the area, the CFR is home to a large number of succulents representing the Mesembryanthemaceae (vygies or mesembs), Geraniaceae (pelargoniums) and Crassulaceae (‘plakkies’ or stonecrops).
Not many aloes grow in fynbos, but those that do have become very popular in amenity and domestic gardening in those parts of the world that experience a Mediterranean climate.
This miniature aloe suckers extensively by sprouting rosettes from its base to form large clumps (clones). Some forms of the species can grow quite big, but in horticulture the small, typical form is the most popular. The bluish green leaves are short and distinctly angled in cross-section. The large red flowers are sparsely to fairly densely spaced in a once- or twice-branched inflorescence.
This creeping species has comparatively thin stems that are not able to support themselves in an erect position unless they scramble into surrounding vegetation. The leaves are widely spaced on the stem and only slightly succulent. The bright yellow flowers are fairly large, but the flower clusters are quite small.
Plants form fairly long creeping stems that retain the remains of dry leaves, but these whither more quickly than the leaves of most stem-forming species. Leaves are bluish green and carry numerous stubby teeth on their margins. Flowers are arranged into large, head-shaped inflorescences. This species mostly occurs on the margins of fynbos patches in the Little Karoo, where plants often dangle down near-vertical cliff-faces.
Plants form long stems that creep along the ground. The stems are covered in green or dry, short, more or less triangular, leaves that point upwards. The inflorescences are curved upwards and vary from head-shaped to conical. The species is commonly cultivated on the Mediterranean coast of Europe, where it flourishes in the prevalent climate which is so similar to that of its natural habitat.
The basal and lower parts of the stems and branches of this tree-like aloe are covered by a strikingly corky bark. The tip of each stem carries a cluster of tongue-shaped bluish green leaves, which are eye-catching as they are arranged in the shape of a fan, forming a distinct row as seen from the growing tip of the shoot, usually with 180° between the leaves. The bright red, pencil-shaped flowers are sparsely arranged on simple or branched inflorescences.
Plants grow as robust, branched shrubs. The dull green leaves are carried erectly and are beautifully margined with short, white teeth. Inflorescences are elongated and carry dull red, pencil-shaped flowers along their lengths. When not in flower, Aloe succotrina can easily be confused with A. arborescens, but the dried leaves of A. succotrina are a distinctive purple colour.