Environment
| Rooibos and the Environment |
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Rooibos comes from a unique environment, famed for its diversity of animal and plant life, spectacular rock formations and rich cultural heritage. The mountainous Cederberg area lies about 200km north of Cape Town in South Africa’s Western Cape province. It is a popular destination for eco-tourists, archeologists, astronomers, rock-climbers, as well as wildlife and hiking enthusiasts. It is also the only place in the world where Rooibos (Aspalathus linearis) grows naturally. The Cederberg Wilderness Area is a protected reserve with World Heritage status and recognised as global biodiversity hotspot. The area is famous for its rock formations, composed of sandstone and share formations (deposited between 500 and 345 million years ago), of which the best known are the Wolfberg Cracks, Wolfberg Arch, Maltese Cross and Stadsaal Caves. The Cederberg boasts a spectacular gallery of indigenous rock art, found in caves and under rock overhangs. The art is between 300 and 6 000 years old, part of the rich legacy left by the Khoi and San people who inhabited the area from early on. Vegetation in the Cederberg is a mixture of mountain fynbos (Afrikaans for “fine bush”) and Succulent Karoo plants, with more than 1 800 different plant species, including the endemic and rare snow protea and the Clanwilliam cedar tree. Fynbos is so unique in terms of its plant groups that it is recognised as part of one of only six floral kingdoms of the world - the Cape Floral Kingdom. Animals commonly found in the area include baboons and various antelope, with the Cape Leopard the Cederberg's largest predator. Other animals include more than 100 bird and 15 snake species, as well as the Armadillo girdled lizard, an endemic reptile of the area. The Cederberg Mountains form the main catchment area for the Olifants-Doorn River system and is also home to the richest variety of endemic fish south of the Zambezi. * Information sourced from CapeNature and its Project Management Unit for the Greater Cederberg Biodiversity Corridor . ROOIBOS ECO-TOURISMThe Rooibos industry forms a special part of the Cederberg’s tourism attractions. Many Rooibos producers and manufacturers offer Rooibos farm tours, factory visits, tea tasting, rock climbing, rock art viewing, as well as a large variety of accommodation and other tourist facilities.From 2009, this section of our site will host a comprehensive list of Rooibos tourism activities offered by the Rooibos Council’s members. |
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