Time: Tuesday 21 November 2023 at 7.30pm (GMT)
Making a very welcome return to the BCSS Zoom talks is Dr. Hazel Taylor who will continue her travels through South Africa.
Biography – Ever since I was given my first cactus at the age of 7 or 8, I have grown cacti and other succulent plants and have been a member of the British Cactus and Succulent Society (BCSS) and its predecessor for over 50 years. I have been a member of Bromley branch since it was founded, have been on the branch committee for many years and am currently its chairman.
Seeing cacti and succulents in habitat is important to me, especially seeing cacti and other succulents in the context of the other native flora of the region and I have been on field trip holidays in Madagascar, Argentina, South Africa, Texas (Big Bend) and Mexico.
In April 2017 I was first elected to the national BCSS Shows Committee and am currently the BCSS Shows Secretary. I enjoy participating in our work to help new and aspiring judges to learn, assist experienced judges to stay up to date and to maintain judging standards. We also organise and run the BCSS quadrennial National Show, with the next one scheduled for 2026.
We begin our journey in Nieuwoudtville, which has a reputation as the “Bulb Capital of the World”, and takes us to nearby Papkuilsfontein, where we see a range of succulents including Adromischus filicaulis and Anacampseros retusa as well as orchids and lizards. Then we travel south towards Ceres, travelling through the eastern edge of the Tankwa Karoo National Park, seeing various succulents, including the attractive Aloe falcata and Crassula barbata and some unusual wildlife. Near Ceres we saw treasures such as Euphorbia silenifolia and the Peacock Moraea (Moraea villosa), before moving on to the de Hoop Nature Reserve to see sand dune plants as well as antelopes and birds. We encounter a surprise Gasteria, not seen by our guides on their previous visits, on our journey back along the coast to Cape Town.