UL botanist calls for protection of mountain aloes

POLOKWANE – Aloe marlothii, or mountain aloes, are still quite evident in and around the city and one of the landmarks of the Polokwane Game Reserve.

Concerns were, however, raised when a great number of these iconic succulents were recently chopped down on vacant land next to Dalmada and Polokwane Observer requested Dr Bronwyn Egan, a botanist from the Larry Leach Herbarium of the University of Limpopo to shed some light on the situation.

“Unfortunately the Aloe marlothii is not protected and aloes have only their thorns to stand between them and an increasingly hostile environment. Mountain aloes, in particular, seem to be facing some kind of onslaught, with many in the Polokwane area having succumbed to an axe or a grader,” Egan explained.

According to Egan, Aloe marlothii can live for over 100 years, and, if left in peace, can grow to about six metres tall.

They bear striking, horizontal racemes of orange-red flowers, which bloom in winter and stand out against a generally drab veld. They feed a multitude of bird and insect species by producing copious amounts of nectar during food-scarce winter months.

They are not only a visually stunning component of our African bush, but are also medicinally important. Used since ancient times to treat hypertension, respiratory infections, venereal diseases, chest pain, sore throat and malaria, scientific investigations now support the legitimacy of these remedies. A testimony to their importance through the ages, is the large Aloe marlothii stands growing at the Ndebele archaeological site in the Polokwane Game Reserve.

This is not an area that is generally suited to the aloes, being frost-prone and lacking in rocky outcrops, and it is thus postulated that people introduced the aloes through purposeful transport of seeds into the villages because of their value.

Nowadays, however, despite being a vital element of the bushveld, aloes are often removed from the veld, either for gardens, or to make way for development. Unfortunately, the demise of an aloe translates into the demise of everything else that relies on this large, dominant element of the environment for food or shelter.

Aloe marlothii are still plentiful. They still occur in large enough numbers to provide food for sunbirds, shelter for lizards, and thorny nesting spaces for rodents. There are still enough for us to utilise some for their medicinal properties, either by harvesting them sustainably, or by gathering samples for pharmacists to investigate for novel medical treatments. This will not be the case in a few more years if the current trend of removing or destroying them continues.”

Egan emphasised that, to remove a wild plant from the veld, you require the landowner’s written permission, whether or not the plant is protected, and to remove a protected plant, you require a permit from the Department of Economic Affairs Environment and Tourism.

To remove more than 700 ha of any indigenous vegetation, an environmental impact assessment is required and to remove more than 300 ha of a protected vegetation type, an environmental impact assessment is also required.