The site located at the Gariganus farm, close to Keetmanshoop, became so famous for its forest of about 250 'Quiver Tree' that it has been declared a National Monument.
Forest of 'Quiver Tree' - 'Kokerboom'
You don't find a lot of grass in the arid south of Namibia. Trees are also scarce. Succulents - water-storing plants - are the main vegetation of the south.
The most impressive of these trees is the Kokerboom or Quivertree, indigenous and endemic to the hot and dry southern part of Namibia and Namaqualand in South Africa.
It can reach a height of 9 metres and is frequently found, amongst other places, in the area surrounding Keetmanshoop.
One of the most spectacular and most photographed Kokerboom or Quiver tree forest is located about 13 kilometres north-east of Keetmanshoop.
If you arrive there at about sunset, you will definitely believe that you are on another planet.
The Quiver tree or "Kokerboom" have adapted to the extreme environmental conditions by storing water in their trunks.
Apparently, the tree only blossoms for the first time after 20 to 30 years and can easily reach 300 years of age.
The wood is very light and spongy inside. And because the trunk and branches can be easily hollowed out, they were used by the local San hunters to make quivers, giving its name to this tree.