Wonderboom (tree)

Last updated

Wonderboom
Ficus salicifolia - Die Wonderboom, d, Wonderboom Natuurreservaat.jpg
Wonderboom (tree)
Species Ficus salicifolia
Location Wonderboom Nature Reserve, Pretoria
Coordinates 25°41′14.2″S28°11′30.5″E / 25.687278°S 28.191806°E / -25.687278; 28.191806
Height 22 m (72 ft)
Diameter5.38 m (17.7 ft)

The Wonderboom (Afrikaans: 'wonder tree') is a dense grove of parent and daughter trees of the species Ficus salicifolia , that descended from a central bole of about a thousand years old. [1] [2] It is situated in the Wonderboom Nature Reserve, Pretoria, and two circular walkways currently protect it from pedestrian traffic around its trunk and roots. As it has grown, its outlying branches have rooted themselves around the parent tree. This has repeated until there are now three layers of daughter trees encircling the mother fig, with 13 distinct trunks, covering an area with a diameter of over 50 metres (160 ft).

Contents

History

The Wonderboom in 1888. The Wonderboom Tree, RAMC O-S-31-557 Wellcome L0022435.jpg
The Wonderboom in 1888.

The tree was discovered by the Voortrekkers in 1836 under the leadership of Hendrik Potgieter who named it the Wonderboom. Many Trekkers rested under its shade on their journey to the Soutpansberg. [3] [4]

In 1870 a fire destroyed a large part of the tree reducing its size drastically. [4]

The "Wonderboom Nature Reserve" was declared a national monument on 23 September 1988.

It was made a Champion Tree by the Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries. [5]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pretoria</span> Administrative capital of South Africa

Pretoria, is South Africa's administrative capital, serving as the seat of the executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Gauteng</span> Province of South Africa

Gauteng is one of the nine provinces of South Africa.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Wonderboom Nature Reserve</span> Nature Reserve in Pretoria, South Africa

The Wonderboom Nature Reserve is a 1 km², 200-hectare reserve that incorporates a section of the Magaliesberg range in the northern portion of the Pretoria metropole, South Africa. Its main attractions are the Wonderboom near the reserve entrance in Lavender street and the derelict Fort Wonderboompoort on the crest of the Magaliesberg, that was constructed towards the end of the nineteenth century, during the Second Boer War. The latter is reached by following the steep, paved walkway that leads from the picnic area to the summit. The vicinity of the fort ruins also afford sweeping views of the city, whose council declared the area around the Wonderboom and both banks of the Apies River a reserve on 28 December 1949.

Wonderboom may refer to:

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roodeplaat Nature Reserve</span>

Roodeplaat Nature Reserve is located on the shores of the Roodeplaat Dam, 22 km north-east of Pretoria, Gauteng.

The Forestry and Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI) (Pretoria) was established in 1997 and is located on the University of Pretoria campus. The initial goal of the institute was to help the development of novel food and fibre crops, that will clearly contribute to global economic development and food security. Over the last decades the goals have expanded to cover a wide range of research fields.

<i>Ficus salicifolia</i> Species or subspecies of Afrotropical fig

The Wonderboom is an evergreen fig species that ranges from the KwaZulu-Natal midlands northwards to tropical East Africa. It grows especially on outcrops, rocky hillsides and along cliffs fringing water courses and may rarely grow up to 10 m (33 ft) tall, and acquire a leafy spreading crown.

<i>Ficus ingens</i> Species of fig

Ficus ingens, the red-leaved fig, is a fig species with an extensive range in the subtropical to dry tropical regions of Africa and southern Arabia. Despite its specific name, which means "huge", or "vast", it is usually a shrub or tree of modest proportions. It is a fig of variable habit depending on the local climate and substrate, typically a stunted subshrub on elevated rocky ridges, or potentially a large tree on warmer plains and lowlands. In 1829 the missionary Robert Moffat found a rare giant specimen, into which seventeen thatch huts of a native tribe were placed, so as to be out of reach of lions.

The marine protected areas of South Africa are in an area of coastline or ocean within the exclusive economic zone (EEZ) of the Republic of South Africa that is protected in terms of specific legislation for the benefit of the environment and the people who live in and use it. An MPA is a place where marine life can thrive under less pressure than unprotected areas. They are like underwater parks, and this healthy environment can benefit neighbouring areas.

The Browns Bank Corals Marine Protected Area is an offshore conservation region in the exclusive economic zone of South Africa.

The Goukamma Marine Protected Area is an inshore conservation region near Knysna in the Western Cape province in the territorial waters of South Africa

The Prince Edward Island Marine Protected Area is an offshore conservation region near the Prince Edward Islands in the exclusive economic zone of South Africa, nearly 2,000 km southeast of South Africa in the Indian Ocean. The MPA provides habitat for seals, killer whales, breeding seabirds and Patagonian toothfish.

The Agulhas Muds Marine Protected Area is an offshore conservation Marine Protected Area region in the exclusive economic zone of South Africa.

The Namaqua Fossil Forest Marine Protected Area is an offshore conservation region in the territorial waters/exclusive economic zone of South Africa

The Browns Bank Complex Marine Protected Area is an offshore conservation region in the exclusive economic zone of South Africa

The Benguela Bank Marine Protected Area is an offshore conservation region in the exclusive economic zone of South Africa

The Hluleka Marine Protected Area is an inshore conservation region in the territorial waters of the Eastern Cape province of South Africa.

The Rocherpan Marine Protected Area is a small coastal conservation region on the West Coast of the Western Cape province, in the territorial waters of South Africa. It is about 25 km north of Velddrif on the road to Elands Bay, north of Dwarskersbos.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Philip Herd Nature Reserve</span> Nature reserve in South Africa

Philip Herd Nature Reserve is a nature reserve within the UNESCO Vhembe Biosphere Reserve in the Vhembe District of Limpopo Province, South Africa. The reserve is located east of the town of Musina on the Limpopo River which forms the border between South Africa and Zimbabwe. It covers an area of 12,000 hectares (Ha), of which 6,616.42 Ha is a declared protected area in terms of South Africa's National Environmental Management Act: Protected Areas Act of 2003. The reserve conserves a critically biodiverse area of Limpopo Ridge Bushveld and 1.5% of the Nzhelele River catchment, which forms part of the Limpopo Water Management Area (WMA) established in terms of South Africa's National Water Act of 1998. The reserve operates under the brand name, The Herd Reserve.

Wonderboom is a northern residential suburb of Pretoria, South Africa. The suburb includes the Wonderboom Nature Reserve site of the famous Wonderboom, on the northern slopes of the Magaliesberg mountains, just east of the Apies River. Neighbouring suburbs are Annlin to the west, Sinoville to the north and east and Wonderboom South to the south.

References

  1. Palmer, Eve (1977). A Field Guide to the Trees of Southern Africa. London, Johannesburg: Collins. pp. 91–93. ISBN   0-620-05468-9.
  2. Palgrave, K.C. (1984). Trees of Southern Africa. Cape Town: Struik. pp. 113–114. ISBN   0-86977-081-0.
  3. "The Wonderboom". gopretoria.co.za. Retrieved 2017-03-26.
  4. 1 2 "Wonderboom nature reserve | South African History Online". sahistory.org.za. Retrieved 2017-03-26.
  5. "STATE OF THE FORESTS REPORT" (PDF). Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.

Commons-logo.svg Media related to Wonderboom fig of Pretoria at Wikimedia Commons