Here is some advice for landowners who want to remove pine trees from their properties in the hope of seeing fynbos plants grow there again: if you have any choice in the matter, do so before the trees have grown there for more than 30 years. The longer you wait, the less likely the chances that any fynbos seeds will be left in the soil to sprout successfully. This is according to research in the South African Journal of Botany that was conducted by researchers from Stellenbosch University and the City of Cape Town in South Africa.