Namibia's Namaqualand: Carpet of flowers covers Namib Desert near Aus

Yellow, blue, purple, white and red. On the sand-coloured mountain slopes and plains on the eastern edge of the Namib Desert west of Aus, a colourful carpet of flowers of various shapes is currently spreading out.

The mass flowering of succulents, for which Namaqualand in South Africa is famous, also occurs in south-western Namibia. This is because both areas belong to the Succulent Karoo. After good winter rains, the water-storing plants begin to bloom.

It rained near Aus in May, June and July. In July, the rain even fell as snow due to the low air temperatures (see report on Namibian.org). Even then, it was clear that this would trigger an extraordinary mass flowering.

"The bloom will reach its peak this week," Piet Swiegers from Klein-Aus Vista west of Aus told Namibian.org. Due to the rainfall at the end of July, the blooms are likely to be visible until the beginning of September. The colour yellow dominates, due to the particularly widespread and aptly named 'Aus Daisy' (Arctotis fastuosa).

Sven-Eric Stender