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Bhungani farm lies on the gently sloping limestone
foothill in the Stanford area. There is a large longitudinal limestone
koppie on one boundary which has numerous small caves on its westerly
aspect. Around the base of the koppie, sheltered from the drying south-easterly
winds, is a fringe of coastal thicket - a wonderful mixture of wild olives,
milkwoods and maytaenus. Running alongside the koppie is a little stream
that is fed by a perennial spring. The stream advances and recedes with
the seasons, providing an important habitat for both birds and animals.
 We
were most fortunate to have had a pair of secretary birds breeding on
the farm. Their nest was perched rather precariously on the top of a clear
stemmed rooikrans tree which stood alone in the veld. We observed two
breeding seasons before the next collapsed and the birds moved elsewhere.
We have a pair of jackal buzzards which nest on a ledge on the steep face
of the koppie and are often seen soaring above. We once came across a
Stanley Bustards ‘nest’ in the open veld - a single speckled
blue-green egg marked the spot, but, unfortunately it never hatched. We
have seen small steenbok, grysbok and mountain rhebok; hares and mongooses;
and the spoor of the small spotted genet and rooikat. The bird life is
varied and wonderful and the fynbos always looks beautiful whatever the
season.
We
purchased the farm in 1989 and named it Bhungani Farm - the Xhosa name
for the dung beetle that we felt toiled as hard as we did. However, our
task was that of alien vegetation clearing. We began by purchasing a chainsaw
and concentrated our efforts on clearing away rooikrans from around the
milkwood trees. We also cleared an area of stinkbeans from the stream
course only to find thousands of seedlings germinated once the ground
was exposed to sunlight.
In
1995 a fire swept across a portion of the farm, supposedly caused by illegal
woodcutters. This was followed in 1996 by a fire which burnt the entire
farm - our farm being used to backburn. This was a devastating loss as
these trees had been huge, magnificent specimens estimated to be hundreds
of years old. However, from the ashes arose an amazing array of flowering
bulbs, orchids and gladiolas that we had not seen before. It was a beautiful
spring and a fascinating time to watch the fynbos recover so miraculously.
Despite
the fires and the aliens, the farm is a place of peace, filled with birds
and sweeps of pristine fynbos - a paradise we do our utmost to conserve.
We feel privileged to be custodians of this beautiful place.
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