Newsletters

Newsletter

July 2001

Robert, after just having returned home after an extended trip, is picking his way through the computer keyboard in the absence of Heidi, who is on sick leave from non-invasive surgery. We are happy to report that the operation was 100% successful and she is well on the way to a full recovery.

After a long and worrisome drought, the cold fronts associated with rain have finally arrived! Of course it has come at a price! It never rains, but it pours. There was some damage to our road systems, but a positive aspect is that our dams are filling up at last, and that we can be reasonably assured of a good harvest next year.
 

We have had a very good crop of Protea repens from our own plantations; having harvested more than a quarter million flowers of excellent quality. That, combined with large quantities from our suppliers has kept our store staff working overtime so that we can fulfill your requirements. Of course it still takes time to get it all dried and packed, a process that can take up to 6 weeks. The rainy, cold weather slows this process. Unfortunately P. repens is an item that we cannot put through the driers as this tends to make them very brittle and because the high sugar content.

We are now harvesting and receiving the last of the Repens and Compacta flowers as well as the Pan and Line reeds. Within the next few weeks we will be starting on production of the following items:

• Silver Brunia
• Compacta, Susannae and Repens rosettes
• Snake leaf

The rosette harvest, trimming and drying will take us well into September/October. If you have not yet placed your requirements, we encourage you to take stock now and let us know, so that we can ensure that we fill your requirements.