Kruidjie-roer-my-nie

The botanical name of  indigenous Melianthus major is a real mouthful but not nearly as bad as its Afrikaans common name: kruidjie-roer-my-nie. If you can’t get your tongue around either, just call it the giant honey flower.

The striking grey leaves with their giant serrations (below, paired with Perilla ‘Magilla’) provide an interesting contrast in the garden – but do have a rather unpleasant smell when crushed – hence the name!

But what most gardeners grow it for are the long bronze-maroon flower-spikes which develop in spring  and act as magnets to any bird with a sweet beak: sunbirds, bulbuls, weavers, and white eyes all flock to them. The seed pods are also attractive, providing additional interest in an off-season garden border.

Left on the plant to dry, the seeds result in lots of baby plants. We saved some from our garden for the Open Gardens Constantia plant sale.

(The plant has toxic properties, so keep leaf-chewing pets and voracious toddlers away.)

Photos: Marianne Alexander, Marie Viljoen. Text: Marianne Alexander

Indigenous plants for shade

Most of us know that Plectranthus will do well in shady spots, but what fynbos species will thrive in the depths?

If you have ever clambered up Skeleton Gorge on Table Mountain you might have noticed some interesting plants, with distinctive, three-lobed leaves – resembling Hellebores – near the top. The plants bloom in late winter and early spring with tall, showy stems and airy white flowers. Later they develop interesting black, bead-like seeds.

Knowltonia vesicatoria belongs to the Rununculaceae family and is closely related to Anemones (so there is some good garden background built in). Brandblaar is an Afrikaans name for it, and apparently the leaves were used to raise blisters on skin over inflamed joints. Maybe that was so painful that you forgot about the arthritis!

Read more about propagating and growing Knowltonia on PlantzAfrica.

Photo credits: Marijke Honig, author of the new fynbos gardening book, Plant Palettes (Quivertree, November 2014), and Marie Viljoen.