From succulents to quiver trees
How did you become involved with the nursery? I married Buys Jr, the son of the late Buys Wiese, who started the nursery in 1964. My father-in-law was involved with the management and running of his nursery until he was in his 80s. His eldest son, Danie, took over the business in 2002.
I love all growing things. My fatherin-law and husband taught me so much about succulents. My degree in agriculture has also been useful. How did the nursery take root back in those days in a region traditionally known for its sheep farming? My father-in-law was intensely interested in plants and in 1964 started a nursery on the small family farm – an unheard-of initiative in those days. From the start the focus was on indigenous succulent varieties – Quiver tree forest on the farm Gannabos
Kokerboom Nursery on the outskirts of Vanrhynsdorp has been reproducing, selling and conserving indigenous succulents for more than half a century. We chatted to the manager, Christine Visser-Wiese
including species from the Great Karoo and Little Karoo, the Knersvlakte and Hantam, Bushmanland and Hardeveld, and also further north from the Richtersveld and Namibia. The Wiese children were closely involved from a young age and knew lists of botanical plant names before they could read! How many succulents do you have? Almost 350 succulent species. This includes my father-in-law’s private collection of rare succulents that can be viewed, as well as our mother plants and about 200 varieties of succulents that we reproduce for sale. Do you grow all the plants yourselves? We grow succulents and quiver trees chiefly from seeds, but a selection of suitable succulents are reproduced by means of cuttings. We still adhere to a strictly indigenous policy. We specialise in the cultivation of rare endemic succulent varieties from this part of the world. The Knersvlakte is home to more than 150 endemic plant species, many of which are endangered. Growing awareness about conservation in the Knersvlakte was very close to my father-in-law’s heart. Which ones do you find interesting? The stem of the string of pearls ( bobbejaanvinger; Monilaria moniliformis) looks like threaded dark beads, or the joints in a baboon’s paw.
The leaves of the jewel plant or carpet leaf ( skaaptongetjie; Titanopsis calcarea) are arranged like a rosette, with coarse tubercles reminiscent of the tongue of a Karoo sheep.
The hitchhiker plant ( vinger-enduimpie; Phyllobolus digitatus) has thick, finger-like leaves that look like the hand of someone signalling for a lift.