South Africa Spring Superbloom 2023: Where to Go, What to See

My goals were to learn more about South African species in the cut flower trade, understand more about the farming of indigenous perennials, and to see plants introduced to global horticulture in their native habitats. What I didn’t factor in was how I’d be seized by the thrill of the hunt, immersed in beauty so staggering it broke my heart to turn away, and how I’d spend every free moment poring over field guides, boggled by diversity. How many pelargoniums are in the country? More than 200. How many Ericas? Maybe 770.

Many popular garden flowers, particularly geophytes, or plants that grow from an underground storage organ such as corm, tuber, or bulb (an adaptation to drought and high temperatures) are South African. These include: Gladiolus, Freesia, Bulbine, Clivia, Crocosmia, Kniphofia, Agapanthus, Eucomis, Nerine, Crinum, and Amaryllis. Other plants, such as Calla lilies, Proteas, Gerbera daisies, Ice plants, Pelargoniums, Gloriosa lilies, Bird of Paradise, Asparagus ferns, aloes, Leucospermums, and Leucadendrons are among countless others whose origins trace to South Africa. Many have been hybridized by horticultural companies and patented, with little money returning to the country despite centuries of bioprospecting.