The Wonderboom (
Afrikaans
Afrikaans is a West Germanic languages, West Germanic language spoken in South Africa, Namibia and to a lesser extent Botswana, Zambia, Zimbabwe and also Argentina where there is a group in Sarmiento, Chubut, Sarmiento that speaks the Pat ...
: 'wonder tree') is a dense grove of parent and daughter trees of the species ''
Ficus salicifolia
__NOTOC__
The Wonderboom (''Ficus salicifolia'') is an evergreen fig species that ranges from the KwaZulu-Natal midlands northwards to tropical East Africa. It grows especially on outcrops, rocky hillsides and along cliffs fringing water courses ...
'', that descended from a central bole of about a thousand years old.
It is situated in the
Wonderboom Nature Reserve
The Wonderboom Nature Reserve () is a 1 km², 200-hectare reserve that incorporates a section of the Magaliesberg range in the northern portion of the Pretoria metropole, South Africa. Its main attractions are the ''Wonderboom'' (Afrikaans ...
,
Pretoria
Pretoria ( ; ) is the Capital of South Africa, administrative capital of South Africa, serving as the seat of the Executive (government), executive branch of government, and as the host to all foreign embassies to the country.
Pretoria strad ...
, and two circular walkways currently protect it from pedestrian traffic around its trunk and roots. As it has grown, its outlying branches have rooted themselves around the parent tree. This has repeated until there are now three layers of daughter trees encircling the mother fig, with 13 distinct trunks, covering an area with a diameter of over .
History
The tree was discovered by the
Voortrekkers in 1836 under the leadership of
Hendrik Potgieter
Andries Hendrik Potgieter, known as Hendrik Potgieter (19 December 1792 – 16 December 1852) was a Voortrekker leader. He served as the first head of state of Potchefstroom from 1840 and 1845 and also as the first head of state of Zoutpansberg ...
who named it the Wonderboom. Many Trekkers rested under its shade on their journey to the
Soutpansberg
The Soutpansberg (formerly Zoutpansberg), meaning "Salt Pan Mountain" in Afrikaans, is a Mountain range, range of mountains in far northern South Africa. It is located in Vhembe District Municipality, Vhembe District, Limpopo. It is named for t ...
.
In 1870 a fire destroyed a large part of the tree reducing its size drastically.
The "Wonderboom Nature Reserve" was declared a national monument on 23 September 1988.
It was made a Champion Tree by the
Department of Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries.
See also
*
List of Champion Trees (South Africa)
Champion Trees in South Africa are individual trees or Grove (nature), groves that have been identified as having special significance, and therefore protected under Section 12(1) of the National Forests Act, 1998, National Forests Act of 1998 ...
*
List of individual trees
The following is a list of individual trees. Trees listed here are regarded as important or specific by their historical, national, locational, natural or mythological context. The list includes actual trees located throughout the world, as we ...
References
External links
{{commonscatinline
Monuments and memorials in Pretoria
Individual trees in South Africa
History of Pretoria
Individual fig trees