Fynbos @ !Khwa ttu – plant knowledges in the Cape Floral Kingdom

!Khwa ttu was delighted to present prints of Fynbos and Renosterveld plants by renowned botanical artist Lynda De Wet, alongside living plants, knowledge and insights of plants from !Khwa ttu’s San Green Team, who care for our exceptional landscape. 

Southern African indigenous populations use local plants for fire, food, water, medicine, perfume, adornment, animal deterrents and poison. 

Before the arrival of European farmers, the renosterveld was very different. It supported large numbers of big game animals. Over 95% of Renosterveld has now been irreversibly lost to farming.

!Khwa ttu sits within the boundaries of the Cape Floral Kingdom, one of the six floral kingdoms mapped onto the world.  We have been actively restoring the natural Renosterveld as part of our stewardship of the land. 

Food plants found in ancient Cape hunter-gatherer cave sites are still eaten - you can often try a few in the !Khwa ttu restaurant!

This exhibition highlighted how different sorts of knowledge and ways of knowing can support each other to build a deeper understanding of who we are, how we belong, and the critical rôle of plants and healthy ecosystems in all our lives.

Alongside plant specimens from the surrounding landscape we showcased a selection of De Wet’s prints from the Rondeberg Millenium Flower Collection of nearly 900 paintings, very generously donated to !Khwa ttu in 2022 by Mark and Caroll Duckitt.