Digging in... finding the flora in The Fire Portrait

I've always been fascinated by the plants of the Cape Floral Kingdom, the most diverse and smallest of the six designated kingdoms in the world, situated on the south west corner of Africa. It's on UNESCO's World Heritage List and is described as being the "hottest hotspot" in terms of variety of endemic and threatened species, an "extraordinary assemblage of plant life and associated fauna covering more than a million hectares." The unique vegetation is adapted to survive drought, floods - and fire. Indeed some proteas need fire in order to propagate. The kingdom stretches from the coast into the interior, reaching an area known as the Succulant Karoo Biome.  

Frances, the heroine of The Fire Portrait, loved to paint the plants of her native England. But when she settles in the Karoo semi-desert, she is faced by a totally different challenge. The scrubby bush is hard and dry and seemingly devoid of colour. It's only when she begins to look more closely that she finds unknown bulbs that flower fleetingly, aloes that put up spikes of brilliant orange in the winter, and strange pebble-like succulents that are easy to miss beneath your feet. They require different colours from those she has used for the gentle landscape of her childhood. 

Understanding these plants was a challenge for me as well! I knew the magnificent flora of Cape Town and environs, but the cryptic Karoo needed research. I spent time in the Karoo Desert National Botanical Gardens in Worcester among their selection of plants that Frances would have encountered in the fictional hamlet of Aloe Glen, situated just further north. As she discovers, the land doesn't bloom easily.
"It's a harsh beauty. It only rewards grit. And persistence."
Aloe Glen's rural community requires grit and persistence, too, as Frances attempts to integrate. But she does persist, and ultimately finds a tentative belonging, like the plants that have made their home in the stark environment. But it's never easy...
"This place will always unsettle me. Draw me in and then push me away..."