Farm 215 - nature retreat & fynbos reserve

13/09/2026

View from Perdekop, the highest peak in the reserve of farm 215, towards the dam on Koudeberg. Picture is taken from the hiking path which takes your around the property in 3 to 4 hours, depending on the amount of picture breaks you take 😄.

06/09/2026

Beautiful flower display in front of fynbos hill. Typical for this time of year, the first signals of spring!!! 🎊

30/08/2026

Celebrating a lesser known species of the Protea family : Spatalla curvifolia (white-stalked Spoon). It is quite widespread in the mountains between Kogelberg and Bredasdorp. It is nevertheless considered “Near-threatened”. Several populations grow on Farm 215. There is scenic population of another Spatalla species on Farm 215 (swipe to next picture): the Spatalla ericoides. This species is categorised as “Endangered”. It has a very restricted range from Farm 215 to Wolvengat. 🙌

23/08/2026

How beautiful, the African harrier-hawk or gymnogene (Polyboroides typus). It’s a bird of prey, about 60-66 cm in length. It breeds in most of Africa south of Sahara. They are adaptable and able to live in both urban and rural human occupied areas. An unusual trade of this species is the double-jointed ankles it possesses, which enables it to reach into otherwise inaccessible holes and cracks for prey. Breeding season in South Africa is November-December, they lay one to three eggs. We love havjng them around 🤩

16/08/2026

The veld is clearly showing that spring is on the way. We show you two pictures of very special plants. The first picture shows the white bulb flowers called Gladioli trichonemifolius (Geelpypie). They are in the middle of the field of creeping succulent “Bakoven Brightfig” (Lampranthus aduncus) (next picture). This one is showing its bright purple flowers. Both plants are listed as “Vulnerable” on the list of threatened South African plants and both plants only resurfaced after we cleared the low lying areas of the reserve from alien invasive trees. Both species grow on seasonally flooded low lying land. All this put together showes why they are as special as they are 🥰.

09/08/2026

The view, the fynbossuite, the hottub, the interior with wood stove, fully equipped kitchen, gasbraai outside. All you need for a perfect, comfortable and relaxing stay in the nature reserve of farm 215. You can sleep, read, hike, bike or do nothing and just enjoy the peace and quiet. 🙌

04/08/2026

The indigenous Gerswolde Forest keeps growing thanks to the continuous and solid support of the projects of the South African Reforestation Trust

Planting Forever-Trees is a good way to remember your loved pones. This load of hunred Cape Beeches will be planted to remember the mother of one of our longest private supporters. Previously she planted a hundred trees to remember her father after he passed away. Ger two parents might have departed this life but the In-Memoriam Forest will grow and thrive for hundreds of years to come in the Gerswolde Forest on Farm 215 - nature retreat & fynbos reserve

02/08/2026

Look what we found in the 30ha block that recently had a prescribed ecological controlled burn. A termite mound! Termites are not bothered by fire and the colony routinely survives as we can see. This mound belongs to the Amitermes hastatus, commonly known as the black mound termite. It’s endemic to the region’s fynbos ecosystem. The mound can be as high as 50 centimeters and this one seems to have just about reached its peak 🤩.

26/07/2026

Beautiful find in the field during the early morning sunrise. The spider makes clever use of what it finds in its natural surroundings. Here it found two sturdy enough restios to hold the web up. The master weaver is nowhere to be seen though! Which might be a relief for some people 😉.

25/07/2026

Fire drives renewal, and is a part of the natural life cycle of the Fynbos biome.

Ecological burning is a form of prescribed burning. This involves the treatment of vegetation by burning it in a predetermined season, frequency and intensity to achieve specific ecological objectives.
On Farm 215 - nature retreat & fynbos reserve, a 30-hectare area of 20-year old pristine mountain Fynbos was demarcated for a prescribed ecological burn. Fire is an important tool in the conservation of Fynbos. For this 20-year old patch of veld, it means a fresh start to the life cycles of many plant species that rely on fire to survive.

Join the Rise of the Fynbos, share your story or learn more about the wild resilience of this bountiful floral kingdom here: bit.ly/4wp1yXx