Back to Darling and the rest of our adventure. We arose on Saturday morning to the sound of more rain. And it was even heavier than the day before. Everybody eventually arose and made their way to the kitchen for breakfast. After saying our goodbyes to Pat and Bobby we took advantage of a break in the rain to get ourselves loaded into the car and on our way to the flower show. The show was being held inside but the vendors were in the field outside the building. And it was pretty messy from all the rain.


We headed inside to see what wildflower shows were all about. And what we found was nothing like our flower and garden shows. Using the plants found in the natural areas around Darling landscapes were designed and recreated. These included the different substrates and types of water bodies seen in the veld. Animal specimens were also added.The different habitats created were labeled by type, e.g., sandveld or fynbos. The pictures give a sense of these displays but not a good feel for how much detail there was. And how many blooming plants were in each. Amazing displays!

In addition to the landscape displays there were some arrangements of the native flowers. Not fancy but very pretty. Most impressive to me was the display of specimens of these plants with labels presenting both their common and scientific names. And people were viewing these and knew many of them. It was striking to see so many people of all walks of life interested in these plants and in the preservation of them in their natural habitats. And there were plants available for purchase for what seemed very low prices. A note about plants for sale, both at these shows and at the nursery we visited, they were not typically in pots. Instead they were in plastic sacks. Interesting.

From the show we headed south from Darling but first stopped at the meat market in town. We had had some of its sausage at Pat and Bobby's and wanted to get some to take home. Then it was off to Mamre. Along the way we tried to purchase some orchid flowers at the orchid show but couldn't get into the sales area without paying admission again. So I kept my money and gave them none.

In Mamre the theme was the same but it was evident that Darling has been doing this flower show thing for many years longer than Mamre. The flower exhibits were in a tent and there were vendors on the grounds all around. But the vendors were more local and there was more of a small town festival feel to it. There was even a brass band that paraded on the street next to the show grounds. Nevertheless, the flower displays were very impressive. And I got to introduce Marcia to Sophie and Ann. Sophie is the lead CREW contact in Mamre as well as the coordinator of the Mamre flower show. She and Ann had arranged the school group for Plant Monitoring Day (see earlier entry). It was very nice to see them again and Sophie seemed particularly pleased that we had come to see the show.



After refreshments we headed home by way of the coastal route, R27. That took us through numerous beach developments and past some very fancy homes. All in all a most delightful trip north we had. And to round out the weekend, on Sunday we went to Kirstenbosch to see the Biennial, the display of botanical art. Some truly stunning pieces of art were seen. Then to see some living specimens in the Conservatory. A great way to finish a really packed and enjoyable week in Cape Town and its surrounding areas!

Edward