The rare cycad
A single male.
Wayne77 — CC BY-SA 3.0 · Bernard DUPONT from FRANCE — CC BY-SA 2.0 · Robert Cutts — CC BY-SA 2.0
Africa's oldest surviving botanical garden, founded in 1849 on the slopes of Durban's Berea ridge as part of a network of gardens that Kew in London wanted to spread around the world to study economic plants and collect new species. The garden covers about fifteen hectares in a subtropical climate, with paths shaded by huge old trees, a lake with water birds, an orchid house, a scented garden and a famous collection of ancient cycads. Its most precious plant is Wood's cycad, one of the rarest plants on Earth: only a single male was ever found in the wild, in 1895, and no female has ever been found, so the species survives today only in gardens, from offshoots of that one plant. Entry is free, and the garden is peaceful and good for families and picnics, with a café among the trees and occasional open-air concerts.
A single male.
And scented garden.
And water birds.
John Zikhali Road, Berea, Durban
Yes, entry is free; it is Africa's oldest surviving botanical garden.
