WHEN we hear the term ‘endangered’ we so often automatically think of creatures like the rhino, but we seldom realise that so much else out there is endangered too. Right now I need to discuss a very important tree that is in dire trouble in the wild. The pepper-bark tree, Warburgia salutaris, or isiBhaha in Zulu, is an extraordinary thing. It is frequently referred to as The Tree of Life because of its quite remarkable medicinal uses, it’s the source of one of the great tonics and panaceas in southern African traditional medicine, in fact salutaris means ‘healthful and wholesome’. That is exactly why it is severely endangered. It is indigenous to northern Zululand and parts of Limpopo (and further north, of course), but everywhere in its range in South Africa it is under threat. There is one tiny copse of them left in the far northern Kruger National Park, and reportedly none outside the park, and the situation is similar in KZN, where there are some wild, but small and isolated communities. It is so bad that the tree is on the red data lists of both the IUCN and the South African National Biodiversity Institute.
It’s mainly the bark and the root bark, and also the leaves of the tree, that are used in various ways for the treatment of, among other ailments, coughs, colds and chest infections, fevers, influenza, rheumatism, malaria, STDs, headache, toothache and gastric ulcers. It is also sometimes used as an aphrodisiac. It comes as potions in various forms and can even be smoked. Indeed, an extraordinary tree.
Uncontrolled over-harvesting in the wild has been the problem, with collectors taking too much bark at one time and thus killing the tree, also simply taking bark and other material too often. All is not lost, however. Propagation programmes are working well and various private and conservation organisations are growing Warburgia salutaris for distribution to other growers and the traditional medicine trade. That’s very good news, perhaps we can undo some of the damage that has been done.
On to another matter of some concern – the weather. We’ve been recording temperatures of 33C day after day, with a high of 34C, and a humidity percentage of well into the 80s. As I write, a local news report on the Internet has warned of 32C and 83 percent and recommended caution. But then it is the Lower South Coast and it is February, so what does everyone really expect? Well, according to official averages, the daily temperature average should be 23.6C (we’ll ignore that as it never drops below 23C, even at night), the daily humidity index is 78 percent (I can live with that) and February’s average rainfall should be 130mm (so far we’ve had exactly 12mm – I’m waiting…).
As I sit here quietly dripping, I think Ill just ignore the official averages. Cheers!
Sources: Local botanist Geoff Nicholls. People’s Plant’s, Ben-Erik van Wyk et al, Briza, Pretoria, 2000. Medicinal Plants of South Africa, Ben-Erik van Wyk et al, Briza, Pretoria, 1997. Making the Most of Indigenous Trees, Fanie & Julye-Ann Venter, Briza, Pretoria, 2002.
