Uilenkraal Forest Restoration Project

Forests for Life is dedicated to restoring forest and woodland ecosystems, effectively manage critical catchment areas, and improving the lives of communities who rely on forest resources across Sub-Saharan Africa. In partnership with the Platbos Forest Reserve in the Western Cape of South Africa, the Greenpop Foundation has been reforesting and restoring Africa's southernmost forest since 2011. This work serves to restore forest habitat for many incredible species including the Cape Leopard.

Platbos Reserve, a relic forest with trees of over 1,000 years of age, is vulnerable to runaway fires. Indigenous forests are rare and endangered ecosystems covering less than 0.05% of the Western Cape, which contain a wealth of biodiversity within their ancient embrace. The protection of the established forest, and the restoration of historically forested land back to forests, is of utmost importance in ensuring the continued survival of Africa's Southernmost Forest.

Conservation Problem Statement:

The Platbos Conservation Trust, through its Platbos Forest Restoration Project, aims to protect and restore the forest landscape in the Platbos Forest Reserve. This project, which was initiated in 2006 following significant wildfires in the Uilenkraal Valley, includes activities to clear the alien vegetation, which poses a fire threat to the forest, and to reforest degraded forest patches with indigenous trees. In this way, not only is the fire risk to the forest reduced, but the forest itself, and the biodiversity it supports, is reintroduced back into the landscape.

The Platbos Conservation Trust has been supported by Greenpop since 2011, a partnership which has expanded since 2020 to include the adjacent Blomerus and Kleinbos farms and the Bodhi Khaya Retreat. To date over 145,645 trees have been planted through this collaboration.

Project Target Areas

• Platbos Forest Reserve
  Platbos Forest occurs in deep sandy, alkaline soil on north-facing, gently undulating terrain. This forest survives on a gentle, sunny slope and is exposed on all sides to the seasonal winds that blow on and off through the summer months. What makes Platbos a unique forest is its tree species composition. The dominant trees are the Afromontane species of Celtis africana "white stinkwood", Olinia ventosa "hard pear" and Apodytes dimidiata "white pear", combined with the coastal forest tree species of Sideroxylon inerme "milkwood" and Chionanthus foveolata "pock ironwood". As a result, Platbos does not fit comfortably into any of the existing forest categories. It has been compared to the Tongaland-Pondoland forests of Kwazulu Natal, and it has also been described as a "sand forest".

• Bodhi Khaya Retreat
  Approximately 40 hectares of the 220 hectares that comprise Bhodi Khaya Nature Retreat are believed to have been afro-mountain coastal sand forest. Agricultural endeavours in the past led to the removal of most of the coastal sand forest. This project manages the reforestation of the original species of the coastal sand forest that once thrived on the land.

• Blomerus
  Blomerus is a property situated between Platbos Forest Reserve and Bodhi Khaya Nature Retreat and has patches of indigenous forests and fallow agricultural land in need of restoration. The work conducted on this property will complement the on-going restoration work within the Uilenkraal valley, through active indigenous tree planting and the completion and maintenance of a fire break which protects both Platbos and Blomerus.

• Kleinbos
  Kleinbos is situated on the top section of Platbos which has been able to extend the existing firebreak onto Kleinbos, delineating the line between fire-prone fynbos habitats in the top section of the property and the forest at the bottom section. This firebreak stretches across three properties partnering with Greenpop to conduct restoration-related work and will allow the extension of Platbos forest to its historic extent, considering the changes within the burning and non-burning communities within this area

Restoration Approach

Greenpop’s proposed solution to the problem of forest degradation is to assist in restoring forest ecosystem function and biodiversity through reforestation. Therefore, this project utilises the Forest Landscape Restoration approach, which is the ongoing process of regaining ecological functionality and enhancing human well-being across deforested or degraded forest landscapes. FLR is more than just planting trees – it is restoring a whole landscape to meet present and future needs and to offer multiple benefits and land uses over time.

Funding and implementation of actions to restore degraded areas will eventually lead to improved forest management and associated co-benefits, such as :

• Biodiversity conservation through increasing habitat availability for forest-dependent species
• Increased soil stability and health
• Improved water regulation
• Increased Carbon sequestration
• Economic benefits derived through eco-tourism and sustained forest productivity

Activities

1. Alien Vegetation Management:
Sites are selected from across all 4 properties. These areas are then cleared of alien vegetation and prepared for planting. This cleared vegetation is chipped and used as mulch to increase water retention and add biomass to the soil.

2. Tree Planting:
A dryland planting approach is utilised to plant groups of trees within mulch pits. After trees are planted, weekly maintenance and watering are carried out as needed to ensure the greatest chance of survival.

Tree Species

| Species | Sideroxylon inerme | Olea europaea africana | Kiggelaria africana | Celtis africana | Apodytes dimidiata | Halleria lucida |
| Common Name | White Milkwood | Wild Olive | Wild Peach | White Stinkwood | White Pear | Tree Fuchsia |

| Species | Cunonia capensis | Curtisia dentata | Ilex mitis | Diospyros whyteana | Euclea racemosa | Olinia ventosa | Chionanthus foveolata |
| Common Name | Red Alder | Assegai | Cape Holly | Bladder nut | Sea guarri | Hard pear | Pock ironwood |

| Species | Canthium mundianum | Searsia pyroides | Gymnosporia grandifolia | Gymnosporia buxifolia |
| Common Name | Rock alder | Taaibos | Forest Spike Thorn | Common Spike Thorn |

Project Outcomes

1. Degraded patches of indigenous forest in the Platbos Forest Reserve reforested with seedlings from the same genetic stock as the old-growth forest.
2. Fire risk decreased through the clearing of alien vegetation and maintenance of an extensive fire break.

Monitoring and Evaluation

Monitoring and Evaluation (M&E) is conducted each Spring (September), with baseline assessments conducted before the implementation of project activities. M&E for this project includes the following:

1. Vegetation Health and Growth Monitoring
2. Vegetation Cover Monitoring
3. Soil Monitoring
4. Fixed-Point Photography

No. of hectares under restoration: 12.28 ha
No. of hectares under conservation: 11.49 ha
No. of trees planted: 125,645 trees

For more information on our work, visit:
www.greenpop.org

For more information on the Platbos Forest reserve, visit:
www.platbos.co.za

Featured video credits:
Director - Sam Chevallier, ReWild Africa
Cinematographer - Schalk Hanekom
Editor - Gil Ribeiro