Medicinal plant use in the Bredasdorp/Elim region of the Southern Overberg in the Western Cape Province of South Africa.

There are many individuals in the Bredasdorp/Elim area who still use plants as medicines to treat many conditions. This study aimed to document some of this knowledge and present an inventory of all the plants in use in the area. Over 40 individuals were interviewed from old age homes, community centres for the elderly as well as people who were known for their knowledge in this matter. The information was gathered by means of questionnaires. In total, 36 plant species from 19 families were found to be in general use in the area. Only 58% of these plants are indigenous to South Africa, 33% are introduced species and 9% are naturalized species. The dominant families were Asteraceae, Lamiaceae, Alliaceae and the Solanaceae. Many of the plants in use are commonly used in traditional medicine around South Africa and share many of the same uses. Some uses, which have not been seen in the consulted literature, have also been documented. A more structured questionnaire was used to determine which plants were most popular for particular ailments. It was found that Artemisia afra and Ruta graveolens were the most popular.

Rapid and recent origin of species richness in the Cape flora of South Africa.

The Cape flora of South Africa grows in a continental area with many diverse and endemic species. We need to understand the evolutionary origins and ages of such 'hotspots' to conserve them effectively. In volcanic islands the timing of diversification can be precisely measured with potassium-argon dating. In contrast, the history of these continental species is based upon an incomplete fossil record and relatively imprecise isotopic palaeotemperature signatures. Here we use molecular phylogenetics and precise dating of two island species within the same clade as the continental taxa to show recent speciation in a species-rich genus characteristic of the Cape flora. The results indicate that diversification began approximately 7-8 Myr ago, coincident with extensive aridification caused by changes in ocean currents. The recent origin of endemic species diversity in the Cape flora shows that large continental bursts of speciation can occur rapidly over timescales comparable to those previously associated with oceanic island radiations.