It is a breathtaking spectacle, the kind that does not get old. In spring, South Africa’s most populous province is a symphony of purple with jacarandas in bloom.
It is not an uncommon sight to see arms jutting out of windows with phones pointing upward to capture the spectacular view of the canopy of jacarandas in their flowered splendour. The awning of trees makes for a beautiful image no matter the angle. Just as magnificent is driving up or down a street covered in a sheath of purplish blues.
The first time I heard someone say they hate the jacarandas, I was taken aback. Perhaps I was astounded because that person is also a gardener. They are a peeve, he tells, and a piece of work. In winter they shed their leaves, in spring they flower and then shed these flowers, he says. The only time that one does not have to tend to their whims is winter, he says.
Phew! Such loathe for these magnificent trees that have earned our administrative capital Tshwane the title of Jacaranda City! But there are underlying issues beneath that sort of hate – and I found out that it cuts deep into the core of who we are.
The history of jacarandas in Pretoria is well-documented. The first trees, it is said, were brought to the capital in 1888 by Jacob Daniel “Japie” Celliers, who stayed in Sunnyside, where the first two trees were planted. They are still there.
There is even a plaque at 146 Celliers Street in the capital, that was unveiled in 1939 by Pretoria mayor Ben Swart, which reads: “These two trees were planted by the late Mr JD Celliers … and they were the first jacarandas to be planted in Pretoria. They were imported from Brazil.” Apparently many of the jacarandas in Pretoria are relatives of these first two trees.
With the myriad environmental challenges facing South Africa, the jacaranda as an alien species is not good for our ecosystem. It is even illegal to plant new trees. But as Gautengers, we love them so much so that we cannot even invest in the future of our environment and replace them with the indigenous wisteria tree – oh what a beauty this tree is.
Called “mogaba” in Sepedi and “umHolo” in isiZulu, my heart sank when I read the South African National Biodiversity Institute’s page on the wisteria tree. It reads: “The tree wisteria is certainly one of the most spectacular of our indigenous trees when in flower, mimicking the splendour of the jacaranda, which unfortunately is proving to be an invader species in parts of South Africa.
“Given time and effort, this tree could replace the jacaranda trees and carpet Pretoria streets with indigenous purple blooms instead,” it reads.
The beauty and splendour of our indigenous wisteria tree is reduced to a comparison with the jacaranda, a foreign species. The tone is; if we love the jacaranda, we will learn to love the wisteria, which mimics it. It is time we give the wisteria its rightful place.
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