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West Coast National Park
Vegetation
Though the thousands of migrating birds is one the main reasons for the conservation of the West Coast National Park, the showy plants of the area, usually growing on granite or limestone rocks, especially during spring time, are what attracts most of its visitors to this fascinating park.
One of the summer-flowering west coast plants is the kukumakranka (koeke-makranka - Afrikaans, Khoi). There are about 32 Gethyllis species, of which G.afra and G.spiralis are perhaps the most commonly used ones. Koekemakranka is one of the few Khoi words still in use today and an interesting example of the contribution, which the Khoi people have made to the cultural wealth of the Western Cape Province.
These interesting plants all have an underground bulb of which the scales form a distinctive neck at ground level. The long, thin leaves are usually spirally twisted or coiled. The attractive flowers appear in summer when the leaves have already died. They have a narrow tube which extends below the ground where the fruit will eventually develop. In mid-winter, the long, club-shaped berry emerges from the ground. It has a fragrant pulp in which numerous seeds are embedded.
The ripe fleshy fruits are gathered. They are highly aromatic and have a powerful sweet, fruity odour. The gathering of the inconspicuous fruit depends to a large extent on a good sense of smell.
Kukumakranka brandy is one of the early Cape remedies for colic and indigestion. Traditionally an alcoholic infusion or tincture is made from a few ripe fruits in a bottle of brandy or witblits. The edible fruit was also highly valued to perfume rooms and linen.
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