Hundreds of ancient fynbos species could regrow and restore a former pine plantation on Cape Town’s Table Mountain, but only ...

Analysis - Underground seed banks in South Africa that date back over 130 years have been found to contain fynbos seeds that ...

Underground seed banks in South Africa that date back over 130 years have been found to contain fynbos seeds that are alive. These seed banks are natural storage areas in the soil where certain plants ...

In South Africa’s Western Cape, a common feature of clearing efforts is the “stack burning” method. This is where invasive ...

It's hoped these naturally occurring seed banks could be used to restore one of the country's most iconic plant ecosystems.

The fynbos is the country's most invaded ecosystem and most of the research on invasive plants has taken place in this ecosystem. Despite the large extent of invasive plants in the fynbos ...

The seeds in question belong to a plant community called the Cape Flats Sand (CFS) Fynbos, the largest portion of which is found in Tokai Park, part of Cape Town’s Table Mountain National Park.

This is where invasive plants such as port jackson are chopped down, stacked on top of each other and allowed to dry out before being burnt. Fynbos takes longer to regenerate on burnt land.

Fires have raged in Cape Town and Table Mountain, in particular, for what feels like the longest time. But why does it happen so often?