On its 10th anniversary this year, the Botanical Education Trust received 22 applications requesting a total amount exceeding R670 000. As only income derived from investments is used for grants, the demand exceeded the available funds almost six fold. Five applications which, in the opinion of the Trustees, would best serve the conservation of our indigenous flora were selected, totaling 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 effect 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.
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% of species richness in semi-arid savannas.
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.
Since its inception the Trust has awarded grants to the value of R865 090 covering a wide range of projects, as per the attached brochure. The Trustees wish to thank all our 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 our indigenous flora as only interest on capital is dispersed annually. The favorable exchange rate for donors abroad means that even small contributions translate into valuable amounts locally.
The Trust is chaired by Charles Botha while Neil Gerber, a past president of the Society of Chartered Accountants, is the Honorary Treasurer and Professor Julia Botha the Secretary. Some of the country’s leading botanists also serve as Trustees, namely Professor Braam van Wyk, Dr Neil Crouch and Dr Hugh Glen. The other Trustees are horticulturist Chris Dalzell and Ms Zaitoon Rabaney, Chief Executive Officer of the Botanical Society of SA. All Trustees serve in a voluntary capacity.
Please feel free to forward this information to any person or organisation you believe may be interested.