Jane Goodall’s stuffed toy; endemic plants on the Blue Mountain; Beezy Bailey; Drs Tasker and Holm
Good Morning
Wildlife advocate and primate expert Jane Goodall died last year at the age of 91. Growing up in Bournemouth on England’s south coast, Goodall had long dreamed of living among wild animals. She said her passion for animals began with a gift of a stuffed toy chimpanzee from her father.
‘Yes, there is hope It’s in our hands, it’s in your hands and my hands and those of our children. It’s really up to us,’ she said in 2002, urging people to ‘leave the lightest possible ecological footprint’.
Goodall said she never doubted the planet’s resilience or human ability to overcome environmental challenges. The Burning Planet.
The Blue and Green Mountain trail guides provide an eco ranger service to our landowner partners monitoring anything untoward or extraordinary in the wilderness areas we walk through. This week’s walking uncovered active plant theft. At a financial institution’s recent celebration of many years in business, the guest speaker, Jannie Durand from Remgro , posed that at the end of each State fraudulent money flow, lies a private business. If your plant buying trips bring you to indigenous plants with no legitimate source please blow your whistle in the direction of SANBI or CapeNature.
Andreas Groenewald explained the id’s of the pictured plants to this week’s keen hikers from the UK, Karoo and Johannesburg.
The Genus Berzelia was named in honour of Count Jacob J. Berzelius (1779-1845), a renowned Swedish chemist who was the founder of chemical symbols and was also a professor of medicine. The Species name was given in honour of a very important collector of Fynbos plants, Thomas Pearson Stokoe, (1868-1959). A British-born mountaineer and plant collector from Yorkshire. He emigrated to South Africa (1911) and settled in Cape Town. He collected high-altitude plant specimens mainly from the Caledon area of the Western Cape.
The Erica Thomae is endemic to the Kogelberg Mountains. It establishes itself among boulders and rocks on sandstone slopes. This plant is allocated the national status of Rare by the Red List of South African Plants, due to its relatively small natural range. However, it is locally common, and its habitat is quite safe and well protected inside a reserve, and it is not facing any threats, thus under the IUCN 3.1 categories this species also meets the criteria for Least Concern (LC).
The species name ‘thomae’ also refers to Thomas P. Stokoe. Its common name “flypaper heath” comes from the stickiness of the flowers.
Since reading about the stuffed toy chimpanzee having planted the seed for Jane Goodall, I have had my ear to the ground for stories of teaching children well. Artist Beezy Bailey started painting at the age of seven. He was an overly busy child, initiating his nickname Beezy. He told Sue de Groot in an interview ‘When I was five I went to nursery school, and when they asked me what my name was I said, ‘My name is Beezy Dream-Come-True’. The funny thing is that even now I refer to my working process as a ‘dream reality’. A super interview which shares the many aspects to Beezy Bailey and his relationship with his father Jim Bailey, founder of Drum magazine. Sunday Times
Dr Matt Tasker was inspired by his grandfather Geoff Tasker’s healing chiropractic hands. For the last few years Matt has job shadowed his Grandfather. Much loved Geoff Tasker has now properly retired, popping into his Somerset West rooms every now and again to stay in touch with the practise now ably run by his grandson Matt.
I am a keen listener of SAFM’s Nico, The Petrolhead. If my family have their way I will let go of my much loved ‘boarding school lift’ merc station wagon of 350 000 kms. On Saturday Nico shared that while rarely consulted, The Crash Test is a must when buying a car. The test compares how well or not different car models survive in a crash. Who would’ve thought? Another practical tip I have learnt, in this month of January 2026, is from Stellenbosch dermatologist Dr Niels Holm. When out walking observe the length of your shadow. When it exceeds your length, absorb the goodness of the sun. As soon as your shadow is dwarfed by you, cover up well, says he. Of Niels’ five children, I think three are either medics or studying medical science, two are still in high school. A medically and musically rich artistic family to be shared in another loveletter.
Riley Roux/Roo, our cross sheep dog and labrador, arrived with mischief warnings. She also received a much loved toy at an early age. When you think your day is done, no rest is allowed, duck throwing is expected of you. If you are a client heading our way in these months, a toy duck for Riley’s collection will assist in sharing this important role in the evenings at Wildekrans Country House.
While writing, this oldie by Crosby, Stills, Nash & Young ‧ 1970, persistently played inside me head.
Teach Your Children
… You, who are on the road
Must have a code you try to live by
And so become yourself
Because the past is just a goodbye
… Teach your children well
Their father’s hell did slowly go by
Feed them on your dreams
The one they pick’s the one you’ll know by
… Don’t you ever ask them why
If they told you, you would cry
So just look at them and sigh
And know they love you
… And you, of tender years
Can’t know the fears your elders grew by
Help them with your youth
They seek the truth before they can die
… Teach your parents well
Their children’s hell will slowly go by
And feed them on your dreams
The one they pick’s the one you’ll know by
… Don’t you ever ask them why
If they told you, you would cry
So just look at them and sigh
And know they love you
… Don’t you ever ask them why
If they told you, you would cry
So just look at them and sigh
And know they love you
… Ooh, and know they love you
And know they love you, yeah
And know they love you
Source: Musixmatch
Songwriters: Graham William Nash
Source: Musixmatch Songwriters: Graham William Nash
With love
