The mountains, valleys and coast of the South-Western Cape are the natural habitat of the largest variety of plant species in the world - the Cape Floral Kingdom. It may be the smallest floral kingdom in terms of area, covering only 0.4% of the earth’s surface, but is one of the richest in terms of variety. The other five floral kingdoms are the Holarctic, Palaeotropic, Neotropic, Australasian and Antarctic.

The Fynbos region forms part of the Cape Floristic Region (CFR), which covers approximately 90 000 km2 with more than 8 500 flowering species and gymnosperms and about 75 species of ferns and nonflowering plants. About 45% of Southern African flora is packed into an area as little as 4 % of the total land surface. 68 % of these plants are found nowhere else in the world. Table Mountain alone boasts 1 400 species of Fynbos. The CFR has more plants than any other area of the same size anywhere in the world.

Fynbos: What Is It?
Fynbos is the common name for the fine-leafed thick shrub-like vegetation, characterised by very small, leathery leaves often protected with hairs, which grows in the winter rainfall area of the southern and south-western parts of the Western Cape. (Fynbos is Afrikaans for "fine bush").

Fynbos consists of the three main plant types, ericoids with fine leaves and bell-shaped flowers, colourful proteiods and leafless reed-like restioids. A variety of bulbous and tuberous plants, legumes and buchus, as well as renosterbos, slangbos and everlastings are also part of the Fynbos family.

Ericaceae
Ericaceae form the lower shrub layer and are heath-like with small leaves. Members of the species-rich genera, Erica, Aspalathus, Agathosma, and Phylica belong to this type. The Proteaceae are usually the tallest and most conspicuous of the Fynbos plants, especially when they are in flower. One of these typically broad- and leathery-leaved shrubs is the King Protea, South Africa’s national flower. The Restionaceae are reedy plants and grow in very diverse habitats, ranging from arid salt marshes and sand dunes to mountain slopes and crags in the cloud zone. Different species flower at different times throughout the year, with the highest number flowering between mid-July to mid- October, which is spring in South Africa.

The Cape Floral Kingdom is particularly rich in heathers, with an astounding 600 species. These plants, characterised by needle-like leaves and bell-shaped flowers make popular garden and pot plants, Unfortunately, 1 326 Fynbos species have already been declared extinct, endangered or rare. This includes the lovely snow protea, which only grows above the snow line in the Cedarberg.

There are over 3 000 geophytic species (perennial plants with underground storage organs such as bulbs, rhizomes and tubers plants that propagate through buds below the surface) in Fynbos, the richest concentration of growthform in world. (Geophytes are herbs.) Spectacular displays of colourful flowers cover whole mountainsides and marshes after fires prompt them to flower profusely. Many of the Fynbos geophytes, including species of Freesia, Gladiolus, Sparaxis and Watsonia are cultivated in gardens worldwide.