Regional Vegetation

Wildcliff offers an outstanding example of the flora of the reknowned Cape Floristic Region. South Africa has the third-highest level of biodiversity in the world, thanks in no small part to the Cape Floral Kingdom. The Table Mountain National Park alone has more plant species within its 22,000 hectares than the whole British Isles or New Zealand. A stretch of land and sea spanning 90,000 square kilometres, or 0.05% of the earth's land area, the Cape floral kingdom contains roughly 3% of the world's plant species. Of the 9,600 species of vascular plants found in the Cape floral kingdom, about 70% are endemic, ie occur nowhere else on earth.

Regional NDVI

The NDVI (Normalized Difference Vegetation Index) is derived from NOAA Satellite Imagery and provides a measure of the density and vigor of green vegetation growth. An index of zero indicates rock or bare soil; negative values correspond to open water. Indices of 0.1 to 0.6 indicate vegetation, with higher values associated with greater density and greenness of the plant canopy.

Regional Soil Associations

The SOTER Soil Association categories are internationally recognized groupings of known soil types. The major soil groups in the Wildcliff immediate area are G1 (rock with limited soils) and C1 (soils with a marked clay accumulation).

Regional Predicted Soil Loss

All soils lose soil at some rate over time. Some soils are prone to lose more than others, due to certain soil conditions such as slope, depth and texture. Wildcliff is located in an area where soil loss potential is low, but is surrounded by soils that have a much higher loss potential.

Regional Degraded Lands

Depending on land use, climate, and vegetation cover, soils with the same soil loss potential may be more or less degraded. Only small areas of land in the region of Wildcliff are classified as degraded.

Regional Irrigated Lands

Irrigation of lands for the purposes of agriculture can have immediate benefits for the production of crops, but can have detrimental effects on the groundwater and surface accumulation of salts. In the Wildcliff area only a few small plots of irrigated lands are identified in this map.

Regional Soil Phosphorus

Phosphorus is an important plant nutrient that can effect the vigor and amount of vegetative growth if it is insufficient in the natural soil. Fertilizers can supplement natural phosphorus levels to enhance cultivated crop production. Wildcliff is located in a lower phosphorus zone, surrounded by areas of higher concentration.