Silwerboomkloof Natural Heritage Site is a small, protected valley (“kloof”), near the
Helderberg Nature Reserve
Helderberg Nature Reserve is a nature reserve in Somerset West, South Africa.
This nature reserve is located on the southern slopes of the Helderberg mountains. Its 398 ha consist mostly of “Kogelberg Sandstone Fynbos” (a highly species-rich ...
, in
Somerset West,
South Africa
South Africa, officially the Republic of South Africa (RSA), is the southernmost country in Africa. It is bounded to the south by of coastline that stretch along the South Atlantic and Indian Oceans; to the north by the neighbouring countri ...
.
The name Silwerboomkloof means “Valley of the Silvertrees”. The rare
Silvertree (''
Leucadendron argenteum
''Leucadendron argenteum'' (silver tree, silver leaf tree, af, Witteboom, or af, Silwerboom) is an endangered plant species in the family Proteaceae, which is endemic to a small area of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa. Most grow in and around ...
'') is a striking, silver-coloured tree of the
Protea family, and this reserve conserves a forest of them. The iconic Silvertree is actually indigenous to the eastern slopes of
Table Mountain, making the population at Silwerboomkloof a bit of an isolated anomaly.
This reserve encloses a section of “
Granite Fynbos” and “
Renosterveld” and a total of around 220 species of plant have been recorded.
See also
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References
{{Cape Town, natural
Nature reserves in Cape Town
Protected areas of the Western Cape