Flowers from other lands provide a link with the past, a tie with the present, and a bond with the future.
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Soccer enthusiasts from countries with diverse climates will be visiting South Africa during the 2010 Soccer World Cup. We grow many of the beautiful wild flowers that come from these countries, and our gardens could well be a floral world, a so-called ‘United Nations of Plants’.
Growing plants from foreign lands began centuries ago when plant collectors travelled to distant lands to collect new specimens. Lavender and rosemary were discovered on rocky outcrops of the Mediterranean, bright marigolds and dahlias in sunny Mexico, petunias grew in Brazil, Japan was known for its azaleas and cherry blossom, and the tiny fragrant sweet pea was discovered in Sicily.
In cool northern climates, where the sun plays hide-and-seek on many days, sun-loving African and Australian daises were optimistically grown. On limy soils, acid-loving plants from the East needed special beds of peat and compost; alpine plants that perished at the slightest hint of wet feet were grown in raised beds, and in sandy gardens depressions were made to create a place to grow bog-loving plants.
America
Of the countries participating in the 2010 Soccer World Cup, Mexico has given us dahlias, fuchsias, marigolds, zinnias and poinsettias, while petunias, alstroemerias and bromeliads come from Brazil. Orchids are found in many Central and South American countries, with the chocolate-box orchid Cattleya labiata the national flower of Brazil, and the green frilly-lipped Rhyncholaelia digbyana the national flower of Honduras. A relative of our coral tree, Erythrina crista-galli, is from Argentina and Uruguay.
Europe
Europe is represented by tulips from Holland, lavender from Portugal, dianthus from Slovenia, and pomegranate and carnation from Spain. The laurel, violet and acanthus are associated with Greece; the iris is the national flower of France. The rose, originally from Persia and China, is the national flower of England, while the Marguerite daisy (Argyranthemum frutescens) represents Denmark.
Australasia
Japan is known for its cherry blossom and chrysanthemum, the rose of Sharon (Hibiscus syriacus) is the national flower of South Korea, and Siebold’s magnolia is the national flower of North Korea. Australian plants that are welcome in our country are the waratahs and banksias.
Africa
Africa is a land of fiery sunsets and clear blue skies. It is a land of tropical rainforests, verdant valleys and majestic mountains, vast deserts, savannah and sparse scrubland, with flora as colourful and varied as its climate and its people. Algeria, with a Mediterranean climate, has given us olives and palms and Ghana the date palm. A plant indigenous to Cameroon is the red stinkwood (Prunus africana), a plant currently protected under CITES because it has, for many years, been exploited for its medicinal bark.
Ten percent of the world’s flowering species are found in South Africa, with Protea cynaroides the national flower. From early spring, while snow still covers the mountaintops, the first wild flowers thrust their way through rocky outcrops, and appear in the still brown grass, and on hillsides blackened by fire. The floral show continues, each season seeming to outshine the previous, until once again the first snows of winter fall and the countryside sleeps.
Over the years, many of the plants that came from foreign lands, provided they are not listed as undesirable invasive alien plants, continue to colour our gardens. And when we weave their rich colours and soft pastels into our gardens among our own unique and beautiful flora, we will be reminded of old and new friendships from around the world made during the 2010 Soccer World Cup.
By Joan Wright
