THE LOCATION AND CLIMATE
OF GONUBIE
Do you wonder where Gonubie is and what the climate is there? This is important information for orchid growers. Well we hope that this page will clear up some of your questions in this regard:
The Eastern Cape Province of South Africa is right at the south-eastern tip of the African continent. The 2 major cities of this Province are Port Elizabeth to the south and East London more northwards up the coast. Gonubie is situated about 20 kilometers north of East London along the coast.
The Eastern Cape has more ‘sunshine’ days than any other of South Africa’s provinces
— more than 300 out of 365 days are sunny.
Along the coastal areas, the climate is mild warm temperate to sub-tropical. The climate and temperature gradually changes from a temperate, winter rainfall ‘Southern Cape’ climate south of Port Elizabeth, through a warm coastal belt between Port Elizabeth and East London, to a humid zone beyond East London. It becomes sub-tropical further north.
East London has a moderate climate with a mild seasonal variation and few extremes in temperature. Temperatures can reach up to 26 degrees Celcius during November - April summer months while the winter months are cooler with temperatures dropping to around 10 degrees Celcius during the June/July period. The average annual rainfall is between 800 - 850 mm for the East London coastal area with the majority of this falling during the summer months (October - March). South-westerly winds predominate throughout the year while north-easterly and east-north-easterly winds are also common during the summer months. Spring is usually the windiest time of the year with the January - March period being the calmest. Sea temperatures are generally in the range of 16 - 19 degrees Celcius in winter and summer respectively.(Wiseman, K.A., Burns, M.E.R. & Vernon, C.J. 1993. Estuaries of the Cape.Part II Synopsys of available information on individual systems.)