Botanical Education Trust funds projects

ON its 10th anniversary last year, the Botanical Education Trust received 22 applications for funding of environmental projects, and five applications which, in the opinion of the Trustees, would best serve the conservation of indigenous flora were selected.

Funding for these projects totalled an amount of R113 140. All grant recipients are required to regularly report progress to the Trust.

Sharon Louw of Ezemvelo KZN Wildlife, received an award to study the affect of fire on the Common Sugarbush Protea caffra, which dies if burnt too intensely or too frequently. This study, in the KZN midlands area, will lead to management guidelines for the protea savanna system, which will ultimately benefit the flora as a whole. Of equal importance, is the endangered Pennington’s Protea butterfly, the life history of which is dependent on the Common Sugarbush.

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Dr Marinda Koekemoer of the SA National Botanical Institute, works to help people identify, and thus appreciate, South Africa’s fascinating and diverse flowering plants. In 2013, with the help of funding from the Botanical Education Trust, she published a very successful book featuring the 52 largest plant families. This year’s grant will go towards the Complete Plant Families of southern Africa, which covers all families. Visually self-explanatory and colourful her books are suitable for, and acclaimed by, scholars, students, amateurs and professionals alike.

Dr Frances Siebert of North-West University, received funding for her project on different forb species in semi-arid savanna. Forbs are non-woody plants, other than grasses, and are a particularly important food source for a variety of insects, including butterflies. The study will investigate forb insect interactions and facilitate the preservation of both. Promoting the value of forbs in ecosystem function and conservation efforts is particularly relevant because indigenous forb species account for over 70 per cent of species richness in semi-arid savannas.

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Mistbelt forests in KwaZulu-Natal have been exploited since the late 1880s when colonists decimated them for timber. Today only an estimated six primary forest patches remain and they are now under further threat from alien invasive plants. It is thus important for their conservation to know and monitor the extent, diversity and quality of these forests. Dr Jolene Fisher of the University of the Witwatersrand, has received funding for the collection of ground validation data, to enable her to identify the best open source remote sensing products to map the species diversity in mistbelt forests throughout KZN.

Natasha Visser of the University of Johannesburg, received a grant to support her taxonomic study of the southern African grassland species Thesium. Grassland plants are of great importance, and Thesium has been identified as high priority for taxonomic revision. Because taxonomists seldom appear in the limelight of botanical research, they often find it difficult to attract funding. However, their work is of vital importance in advancing the knowledge of our flora. Properly executed taxonomic revisions provide valuable and critical basic information that can be applied to many practical aspects such as conservation status, environmental management and environmental education.

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Since its inception the Trust has awarded grants to the value of R865 090 covering a wide range of projects. The Trustees thank all the donors, large and small, who have made these grants possible. The Trust has been granted, by SARS, an exemption certificate which permits any donor in South Africa to treat the donation as a tax deductible expense. Whether an immediate contribution or a legacy, all donations permanently benefit indigenous flora as only interest on capital is dispersed annually. The favourable exchange rate for donors abroad means that even small contributions translate into valuable amounts locally.

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