GARDEN DiVA April 2024

Today someone told me: your garden looks different to other gardens when I look through your gate. He was referring to the glorious beds of roses and dahlias strutting their stuff where everyone can see them, right by the gate. I am sure when two of my neighbours are going to see my untimely exposed garden where walls are being rebuilt this week they will agree that I have a totally abnormal garden. It is definitely slightly overgrown (okay, maybe more than slightly), as it is filled to the brim with delightful plants, mostly of the flowering or edible kind. Yes, I am the one who have been growing apples (and eating them) in my Centurion garden since 2006 and I am the one who planted a hedge of blueberries when the first bushes became available at my local hardware store many years ago. I also planted various other berries over the years, as well as asparagus, pomegranate and quinces, when these plants were not readily available. Oh yes, and we have a huge herb garden stocked by the local favourite hangout place, Herb Land (Healthy Living Herbs). I have also been addicted to bulbs for decades -

all bulbs, but especially dahlias, long before they became fashionable. When Hadeco opens the winter bulb season in March every year I am like a toddler in a candy store and the worst message I can possibly read in that online catalogue is OUT OF STOCK. I also became besotted with roses over the years, and how can you not love roses in South Africa? We have the best and most inspiring rose-growing family in the world here – the Taschners of Ludwig’s Roses. Awaiting the new catalogue every year (around March/April) is a nailbiting experience for us rose groupies, as we cannot wait to see which new roses are launched! (I am very proud

to say Ludwig is writing about roses in GARDEN DiVA magazine.)

In this new online garden magazine you will be able to see and read about my garden experiences and also see many local and international gardens I photographed. You will get expert tips on landscaping and plants and you will be able to ask your garden questions. I welcome you to my garden and to GARDEN DiVA magazine. I am a well seasoned garden writer, landscaper and speaker, and have been serving the green industry through garden magazines and social media since 2004.

For now, GARDEN DIVA magazine will be completely free to our readers and it will inform you of all things new in terms of gardening in South Africa. I hope the green industry will support this initiative.

What an exciting time to garden! There are so many wonderful plants, seeds, corms and bulbs available from our amazing garden centres! Let’s grow together.

‘Lioness’ GrandiRosa TM rose in my garden.

Lizette Jonker

GORGEOUS GREEN GIFTS

Quirky or practical, we find some of the nicest products that garden lovers would love! Go on, spoil yourself or a green friend today!

Wooden planting markers

R20 each www.tbirdsgarden.co.za

072 974 9815

Stick-in laser-cut rabbits for pot plants or anywhere in your garden, R210 each, from Garden Bleu, www.gardenbleu.shop

PLANT FOCUS:

‘Little Gem’ offers all the magnificence of the well-known huge Magnolia grandiflora but it is a compact tree just perfect for smaller gardens and big containers. ‘Little Gem’ is an upright-growing, small tree growing 6-8m tall. It flowers in late summer and early autumn and its iconic and very fragrant, white flowers are a whopping 12-15cm in diameter. Its glossy green leaves with the downy brown undersides are sought after for weddings.

This magnolia variety is easy to grow and quite disease-resistant. It is perfect for patios in large containers, as a screening tree or as a specimen tree. Plant in full sun or partial shade with at least four hours of direct sunlight a day. Newly planted trees need constant monitoring, and watering at least three times a week. Once established they only need watering once a week. Container plants need to be watered more often.

Feed your ‘Little Gem’ from autumn to spring to keep it healthy and ensure good flowering. The tree can be pruned to keep it neat and dead flowers should be removed to keep the plant looking good.

Buy your ‘Little Gem’ from your local garden centre or ask them to order you a tree from Malanseuns Plesierplante.

PICK OF THE CROP

Wow your guests with edible flowers in your salad. We are fortunate to find edible flowers in certain grocery shops, but it is always best to grow you own. Kirchhoff’s wonderful selection of seeds of edible flowers are available from your local garden centre, supermarket or hardware store. You can sow this seed mix in autumn (now) and enjoy your delicious fresh edible flowers in the winter in salads or with croutons on top of soup. TIP: When you plant these seeds, make sure it is in your vegetable or herb garden so you do not accidentally pick flowers that are not edible.

Dahlia tall wellies

R1 700 each from Dans in die Reën, www.dansindiereen.com 072 190 2737

Magnolia ‘Little Gem’

Dear Garden Diva, thank you for coming all the way to Tzaneen to talk to us about roses recently. What time is the best time for us to prune our roses in the warmer, more subtropical areas? This is a photo of the ‘Jean Geldenhuys’ rose in my garden, she is very hardy in our

harsh conditions. And also a photo of people attending your talk in Tzaneen.

GD: In the warmer areas of our country roses should be pruned in July, even though they are still blooming beautifully into winter in Letsitele. Pruning will allow the plant to regenerate and be even more prolific in the next season. It was wonderful to see the enthusiastic rose growers of Tzaneen, Duivelskloof, Letsitele and surrounding areas. What a wonderful visit! Read more about a garden I visited there on p 36.

This is your own column where you can ask me any garden or landscaping question. In our first column I received questions from two members of the Pretoria Rose Society.

Send all your questions and photos to gardendiva@mweb.co.za

Dear Garden Diva, what can I plant around my potted roses? I planted licorice plant around mine. I also like lavender in my rose garden, but i was advised by my local garden centre to plant the ‘Margaret Roberts’ lavenders between my roses. I know these are too big to plant in my rose pots.

GD: The golden rule is that the rose and its roots should always come first. If the rose has competition for water and food, it will battle and get diseased because of stress. Roses in flower beds should ideally not have anything growing right up to the stem, as it gets difficult to feed them granular fertilisers or drench them with Koinor. I like to keep at least a 30-40 cm space open around the rose bush. This means hardy clump-forming groundcover plants such as Tulbaghia, bulbine, erigeron and the miniature agapanthus will have to be split and replanted every year (in autumn or winter). Try to stick to plants that do not creep too

much or choose a creeping plant with a shallow root system. Alyssum and pansies are good rose friends, as they are annuals and their root systems are not invasive. These can be planted around roses in pots too. The licorice plant is indigenous and therefore always wonderful to plant in your garden. However, it can spread quite a bit and needs to be watched closely in your rose pot. Any vigorous groundcover such as the licorice plant

or kooigoed will grow up into the rose bush, and can result in blcoking the sun from reaching the rose leaves. Make sure you trim your licorice plant back regularly and feed and water your roses well. Lavenders are always wonderful for any garden, but the ‘Margaret Roberts’ and the French lavenders are too big to be planted close to roses. Keep them at least 1 m away from your roses. There is a new exciting lavender on the market - Lavandula angustifolia ‘Blue Spear’ - the plants are small and have dark blue aromatic flowers. The plants flower almost 12 months a year. These plants can be planted in your rose pot around your roses.

Benita Hartman, Letsitele:

Natacha Boshoff, Emalahleni (Witbank):

Erigeron

Alyssum

‘Blue Spear’ lavender

This garden with its many garden rooms has evolved over decades and once a year it is a showcase of gorgeous tulips.

- TULIPS ON A HILLSIDE Pashley Manor

Afew years ago, on a visit to the UK to see the RHS Chelsea Flower Show, I had the privilege to visit Pashley Manor gardens in East Sussex, UK. In that year the UK had late snow, which caused the tulips to bloom later than the usual time in April, when Pashley Manor usually has its annual tulip festival.

This 4,5 hectare garden is part of a property with a long and illustrious history – it belonged to Anne Boleyn’s great-grandfather in the 15th century and her two uncles in the 16th century. When the current owners, the Sellick family, came to Pashley Manor in 1981 they found a wild and overgrown property. They started to slowly restore and rebuild the

garden with the help of landscape architect and author Anthony Du Gard Pasley. The hurricane of 1987 took out 1 000 trees, which was a blessing as it opened up views to the beautiful surrounding hillside landscapes. The mature trees and rhododendrons were already there in 1981. Twenty years later the hard work and perseverance paid off as the garden was voted Garden of the Year in 1999 by both Christie’s and the Historic Houses Association.

STEP BY STEP

• 1982: The first project at Pashley Manor was restoring and replanting the historic walled garden that was originally finished in 1720.

• 1987: the terrace next to the house was

levelled. Flower beds along the house and around the lawn were planted.

• 1990: The rose garden, rose walk with espaliered pear trees and kitchen garden were designed and planted.

• 1999: the herbaceous borders were planted.

• 2009: the mass planting of azaleas in the green valley was added.

• Every year a new project is completed, even a small project such as gravelling a new pathway or bigger projects such as reclaiming back parts of the old Victorian garden. Since these photos were taken quite a number of improvements have been made, such as the reshaping and relandscaping of the fountain pond.

If you are wondering what the garden looks like the rest of the year after the 45 000 tulips have finished flowering – they have a special rose week in June, a kitchen garden week in July and in August they have a huge display of dahlias blooming all over the garden for the dahlia days event. At the time of my visit, rose bushes with healthy new foliage were visible between the tulips, and liliums were already quite tall and just about to show buds.

CREATE THE LOOK:

• Garden rooms create interest and anticipation. Approach your garden as an outdoor living space divided into areas or rooms that can be enclosed by walls (solid walls or hedges). Your rooms might have different garden floors, might even have a gate or an archway through which you can enter. Creating an enclosing structure such as a tall hedge hide the next garden room from your eyes until you enter it. This creates a sense of anticipation.

• You don’t have to plant 45 000 tulip bulbs to plant a pretty focus area in your garden. One to three packs of tulip bulbs planted together will create a gorgeous grouping.

• Add elements such as potted bulbs and climbing plants on trellises or obelisks to create a pretty vertical space.

• Plant bulbs in groups of one or two colours together to create a powerful and eye-catching display.

• Make your kitchen garden a display garden with neat rows and recycled structures such as bamboo bean tents and support structures made of twigs.

• Always have a destination or focal point in every garden room – put down a bench at the end of a path or the edge of a paved area, or install a fountain, or use an archway over a path to a sculpture or statue or birdbath.

• Use dark foliage (black or burgundy) shrubs in the background to offset bright or light colours of bulbs or annuals.

• Mix foliage plants with flowering plants for a balanced look and depth.

Would you like to have a rose named after you? Of course, yes! Join the ranks of international and local celebrities who have roses with their names and win this fantastic prize to the value of a whopping R150 000! Or be one of 30 readers to win a fabulous tub of rose food!

OWN ROSE! Win your

You are invited to enter our very exciting competition where Ludwig’s Roses will name a rose after you as first prize. This fabulous prize is valued at R150 000! One person’s name will be drawn and that person’s name will get a rose named after him or her. This person will also receive 10 of the named roses to plant at home. In addition 30 people will receive a 750 g tub of VigoLonger to the value of R150. This wonderful slow release fertiliser

HOW TO ENTER

manufactured by Ludwig’s Roses will be delivered to the doorstep of each winner. VigoLonger will turn any garden into a paradise, and you can use it to feed any plants – from roses and flowers to vegetables and fruit trees.

Follow ALL the steps carefully to enter this fabulous competition. You may tag the same 3 friends but the more, the merrier! Remember to comment on FB with #rosediva

1 Follow the Ludwig’s Roses FACEBOOK page . Look for the competition post and comment with: #rosediva and tag 3 friends.

2 Follow the Garden Diva FACEBOOK page. Look for the competition post and comment with: #rosediva and tag 3 friends.

CLOSING DATE: 10 May 2024

3 Join the FACEBOOK group 1 Family 1 StockpileTM (make sure you choose the one with the most followers) – this is for female particpants only. Look for the competition post and comment with: #rosediva. Enjoy your special discount on the Ludwig’s Roses online store.

LUDWIG’S ROSES

We all know this iconic family business as the best rose breeders and growers in the country. Ludwig’s Roses have 8 branches where you can satisfy your need for new rose bushes.

The main farm, just north of Pretoria, is where all the magic happens. This is where about 20 new roses are named every year after they have been

OUR SPONSORS

We thank the wonderful sponsors who made this competition possible:

• Ludwig’s Roses

• 1 Family 1 Stockpile

trialled in the field (a process that can take up to 8 years for each rose). A million roses can be viewed on the farm! And of course, this is where you will find our world-renowned rose guru, Ludwig Tascher, wandering amongst the roses and talking to his clients. If you cannot get to one of the Ludwig’s Roses branches or one of many garden centres countrywide stocking these amazing roses, you can order online and your roses will be delivered to you. You should never be without roses!

1 FAMILY 1 STOCKPILETM

Our nation’s stockpile queen, Ncumisa Ndelu, started a social group for women who struggle financially in 2016. She understood that these mothers had to stretch their rands in difficult times and started advising them on all money matters. Wonderful bargains from all stores are shared by admins and members of the group and this empowers these women to create a better life for their families.

GARDEN DIVA magazine admires Ncumisa by the excellent job has done with her almost 700 000 female followers. We are helping her to reach 1 million members with this competition and that is why we are asking participants to join the group 1 FAMILY 1 STOCKPILE on Facebook to particpate. If you are a male rose lover who wants to participate, please ask a female friend or family member to join. However, male partipants may also only enter on the Ludwig’s Roses and Garden Diva Facebook pages.

Ncumisa is a journalist and she knows how to inspire her 1 FAMILY 1 STOCKPILE community.

Find and join the group on Facebook to benefit from the valuable information.

For the duration of this competition members of 1 FAMILY 1 STOCKPILE will receive a special discount when they buy roses online from Ludwig’s Roses. They can just use the special code given on the competition post on the group and their online basket will be discounted.

ROSA ‘PRETTY YENDE’ (LUDkrilba) the remarkable The story of

Famous singers, especially those who become iconic voices of our times, are often honoured with a rose carrying their name. Our proudly South African opera diva Pretty Yende rose to international fame, winning all the biggest opera competitions and singing on every important opera stage in the world. She was even chosen to sing at the coronation of the UK’s King Charles III recently. Pretty has won numerous international awards for her highly acclaimed performances as sought after operatic soprano.

She recently became a Dior ambassador and, according to her social media accounts, the silver screen might be on the horizon too. The astounding ‘Pretty Yende’ rose is proudly South African, bred by South Africa’s rose guru Ludwig Taschner.

Text and photos: Ludwig Taschner

There are some 25 000 different rose types and varieties listed and described in MODERN ROSES XIThe World Encyclopedia of Roses, revised every few years and published by the American Rose Society. Many of these may only be found in special rosariums such as in the Europa Rosarium in Sangerhausen, Germany.

Roses developed millions of years ago in the Northern Hemisphere. Over the ages wind, birds and travellers distributed roses over distances and the bees carried out hybridisation. About 300 years ago humans started to select the most beautiful suitable types and carried out an intentional pollination.

WHAT IS IN A NAME?

For identification these new roses had to be named. In MODERN ROSES XI some 800 varieties starting with ‘Mme’ (Madame), ‘Miss’ or ‘Mlle’ (Mademoiselle) are listed with the name following the title and these names were often given to honour family members. In modern times, with better marketing opportunities, new rose varieties are very often named in honour of public figures, artists and musicians but with no title before the name.

WHY SO MANY DIFFERENT VARIETIES?

Fashion plays an important role, especially regarding the colour or the shape of flower. The suitability and use plays another important role, and of course also the adaptability to local climates. In catalogues they are grouped according to their growth habit and their use in the garden - as hedges, climbers, tall or low-growing shrubs in flower beds and most importantly for producing nice long-stemmed, shapely blooms that can be picked (cut) and brought indoors for decoration. The scent that is exuding from the blooms is also of importance.

THE SCIENCE OF GENETICS

However, there are the aspects of the performance of rose varieties in specific climates. With the relatively long growing and flowering season in South Africa the genetics of quickly re-sprouting and flowering is important, but also a firmness or thickness of the petals in order to avoid premature wilting on the bush. Since the foliage of the roses is subjected to fungus diseases and attack by

insects it is important to create and select new hybrids that have a natural resistance to this.

We were very happy to note in our trials one creation that seemed to have inherited the very best of its parents in this regard and it was soon no question that we need to re-propagate from it and market it with a name. I posted a photo of an individual bloom of the yet unnamed novelty on Facebook. A suggestion from a lover of opera and big fan of the multi-award-winning South African opera star suggested to us to name it ‘Pretty Yende’. The ‘Pretty Yende’ rose joined the ranks of other roses named after famous singers – for example ‘Maria Callas’, ‘Mimi Coertse’, ‘Cora Marie’, ‘Rina Hugo’, ‘Patricia Lewis’, ‘Bless Bridges’ and ‘Mara Louw’.

Your garden this month

GENERAL TASKS

PREPARE

Collect seeds of summer annuals and remove them as well as herbs and vegetables that are over from beds. Dig over the top 30 cm of the soil and add compost and organic fertilizer pellets.

SOW EASY!

PERENNIALS AND SHRUBS

Shape and prune back summerflowering shrubs and perennials after flowering and make slips. Divide and replant clumps of perennials such as agapanthus, wild iris, bulbine, Tulbaghia.

PESTS

Keep spraying for mildew on roses, dahlias, chrysanthemums, zinnias and the pumpkin family. Spray Ludwig’s Organic Insecticide on plants troubled by twig wilters, such as roses and dahlias. Keep spraying Chronos or another fungicide on roses for blackspot. Spray Bioneem for white fly and thrips.

FEED

Roses should be fed at least once a month with Vigorosa, Bio Ocean, Agri-Boost or GuanoBoost. Also feed subtropical fruit such as banana, pawpaw, mango, litchi and avo. Feed your citrus with 3:1:5, add a thick layer of mulch and water regularly.

HARVEST

Harvest the last berries and latebearing fruit such as apples, pears and pomegranates.

DEADHEAD

Things to keep in mind when sowing seeds:

Spring: September/October/November

Summer: December/January/February

Autumn: March/April/May

Winter: June/July/August

If you are in a winter rain area or get lots of frost and snow in winter, your season can be moved on by one month (e.g. your spring will only start October) and you need to wait before spring sowing.

Vegetables: sow winter veggies – peas, Oriental veg (pak choi, red mustard, mizuna), all lettuces (Iceberg, butter lettuce, Lollo Rosa, cos lettuce, Little Gem, etc), all brassicas (cabbage, broccoli, kale, cauliflower, Brussels sprouts, Chinese cabbage), celery, broad beans, kohlrabi, onions. Keep sowing radish, carrots, leeks, beetroot, Swiss chard.

Flowers: sow sweetpeas, larkspur, delphinium, pansies, violas, primrose (all the primulas).

BULBS - ORDER NOW!

Buy or preorder your winter bulbs now before they are sold out, but wait until temperatures have dropped before planting them. Winter bulbs (sparaxis, daffodils, lilium, Dutch iris, muscari, ixia, allium, dierama, bluebells, tritonia, babiana, hyacinths, ranunculus, freesia, anemone) can be planted until end of May.

Deadhead perennials, roses and herbs such as sage. Cut back asparagus completely.

AMAZING RESULTS WITH

Agri-Boost

Agri-Boost is a certified organic, locally produced fertiliser, with sterilised abbatoir blood and bone as main ingredients. Blood is a high protein source and the main supply in the product of carbon and nitrogen, in the form of peptides and L-amino acids. Bone is the main source of phosphorus and calcium. This combination ensures a well balanced organic source of NPK with high carbon content. The final product is further fortified with sea kelp, fulvic acid, humic acid, nano micro-elements and soil micro-organisms to ensure a well balanced, organic food source for plants and soil. Agri-Boost supplies the plant and soil with essential organic elements needed for life, normally depleted due to overuse of chemical fertilisers. As organic fertilisers break down, they improve the structure of the soil and enhance its ability to retain water and nutrients. Organic fertilisers will ultimately deliver healthy, strong soil and plants.

Agri-Boost is manufactured in liquid format and can be applied as a soil and foliar feed. It can replace a large part of or a full chemical fertiliser progam. A tablet is also manufactured for trees and can be introduced approximately 20 mm into the soil near the plant.

ADVANTAGES OF AGRI-BOOST

• Can be used in full organic gardening or with

chemical fertiliser.

• Safe for animals, birds and bees.

• Increases plant stress resistance.

• Stimulates root health and growth.

• Supplies fast and slow-release organic NPK for sustainable growth.

• Enhances aggregate stability, improves water infiltration and soil aeration, reduces run-off and soil erosion.

HELEN’S SECRET

The following Agri-Boost routine is applied in Helen’s amazing garden, and maintained 12 months of the year (even in winter):

• A 50/50 mix of Agri-Boost Natural Organic Liquid Fertiliser and Nitroboost Organic Nitrogen Liquid Fertiliser once every week or two weeks.

• Agri-Boost Organic Fertiliser pellets once every 8 weeks.

• Agri-Boost Slow Release tablets every 4-6 weeks in all beds and pots.

Contact Daleen Greyling to order your Agri-Boost: 083 381 1931.

Rosemary

No garden should be without at least one rosemary plant. This herb needs no introduction in the kitchen, where its aromatic leaves have been part of delicious meat and vegetable dishes for centuries. The plant’s medicinal properties, some proven in studies, are also legendary.

Rosemary is the ultimate survivor herb in a garden where someone is afraid of killing their plants. It is therefore the very best starter herb for a beginner gardener. It is drought resistant and not prone to many diseases, and it can withstand both heatwaves and low temperatures. The plant has its origins in the Mediterannean, where it grows in sandy or rocky soil. The plant flowers spring to autumn.

The Spanish started cultivating rosemary in the 13th century to add it to meat. Ever since, it has been a firm favourite as culinary herb.

WAYS WITH ROSEMARY IN THE KITCHEN

MEDICINAL PROPERTIES

The herb has many medicinal claims and has been used since ancient times for its antisceptic qualities and to take away bad odours. In medieval times it was put on floors as a strewing herb that would release its fragrant oils when people walk over it, like a natural room freshener. A mere sniff of it and it might improve memory loss or at least your mood! Greek students used to braid sprigs of roses into their hair to prevent memory loss.

PLANTING BUDDIES

Plant rosemary with all the cruciferous vegetables such as cabbage, broccoli and Brussels sprouts. It is also a good companion for carrots, beans, strawberries and other waterwise herbs such as thyme, oregano and marjoram.

HOW TO GROW ROSEMARY

1 Roast potatoes with lemon slices and chopped rosemary. You can add rosemary sprigs to any vegetables you roast.

2 Roast whole chicken or chicken pieces with rosemary and lemon, or rosemary and orange slices.

3 Rosemary goes really well with any roasted meat . Add sprigs to pork, lamb or beef roast for extra flavour.

4 Cut the thick branches of a rosemary plant and use as meat or veg skewers for the braai - a nice skewer that also flavours your food!

5 Two tablespoons of finely chopped rosemary added to your favourite bread recipe will add a wonderful new taste sensation.

6 Infuse honey with fresh rosemary by heating it up on low heat. Use the infused honey as a drizzle over figs and brie.

7 Make rosemary butter by adding a tablespoon of finely chopped rosemary to 150 g of soft butter. Use the butter on jacket potatoes or to spread on warm bread.

The carnosic acid in the herb improves eyesight and damage caused by free radicals in the brain. Studies have seen improvement in certain cancers with the use of the herb, and it may even be helpful in the treatment of brain ageing and dementia. However, care should be taken when using the herb medicinally, especially by pregnant women and people taking medicines such as blood thinning medications or medication for high blood pressure.

• Plant rosemary in soil that drains well, as it does not like clay soil or standing water - that will kill it.

• Water it once a week.

• Rosemary grows upright or some hybrids are trailling and will cascade over a pot’s edges or the edges of a flower box.

• Some rosemary hybrids are very tall and need big space in a flower bed. Choose a large pot if you want to grow it in a container.

• Rosemary might get powdery mildew or get attcaked by white fly. White fly causes tiny white dots on leaves, where the insects suck the leaves. Spray with Biogrow BioNeem for white fly and with Margaret Roberts Organic Fungicide for powdery mildew.

• Cut your rosemary plant back in autumn to allow it make fresh twigs.

Pomegranate

Most of us grew up with a pomegranate tree in the garden of our grandparents. And then the fruit disappeared from our gardens for decades. Fortunately this fascinating fruit has become fashionable again and the result is that we find many new hybrids to plant.

Pomegranates have many health benefits. The pretty fruit contains vitamin C, folate, magnesium, phosphorus and potassium and is also high in fibre and antioxidants. The antioxidants in pomegranates help to fight inflammation and protects the brain. It may help to lower blood pressure and provide immune support. The pomegranate’s origins can be traced to the Middle East and Eastern Asia. Today you can plant hundreds of hybrids, but in South Africa only a few high yield hybrids are commercially grown. One of these hybrids is available at most garden centres - the

‘Wonderful’ hybrid.

SMALL WONDER

The tree has a small noninvasive root system. This means it is asbolutely ideal for a small garden. It is also easy to transplant a tree. The tree is deciduous, and its leaves turn bright yellow in autumn. The fruit takes long to mature and ripen on the trees, and can be harvested in late summer and autumn.

HOW TO GROW POMEGRANATES

• Pomegranates thrive in soil with good drainage. Dig a planting hole of 50 x 50 x 50 cm. Fill the hole with water and wait for the water to drain away. Fill the hole with a 50/50 mix of good soil and organic compost. Add 500 g bonemeal and 500 g organic pellets such as Agri-Boost Pellets, Bio Ganic All Purpose or Vita Grow Organic Fertiliser.

• Water young plants every other day. Make sure you water deeply - spraying 3-5 minutes with your irrigation system is not prope watering. Water needs to reach the roots.

• Prune after harvesting in late summer or autumn. Trees should be kept at a height that makes the harvesting easy.

• There are many hybrids available. Commercial farms often use the ‘Wonderful’ hybrid,

• Pomegranates like hot summers and cold winters. They do not like wind, so plant your tree in a sunny courtyard or close to a bounday wall for protection.

• The trees can take light frost. If your garden has severe frost, plant your pomegranate close to a north- or west-facing wall where the wall can radiate heat at night. Protect very young trees against severe frost.

• Spray for fruit fly when the fruit are wallnut size. Pomegranates flower over a few weeks and all fruit do not set at once, so watch your tree for new fruit and spray again every few weeks. Fruit fly can destroy your entire harvest. The fruit fly bores a tiny hole in the very young fruit and lays its eggs in the fruit - you won’t even notice the tiny hole. Later on the larvae will fill the fruit and it will have huge rotting brown patches.

• Pomegranates don’t do well close to large trees as they do not like the root competition. Leave an area of 4 x 4 m around each tree and do not allow lawn or other plants close to the tree. Weed regularly and add a thick layer of organic mulch around your tree to inhibit weed growth.

‘Parfianka’ pomegranate. Soft sweet seeds, very dark red fruit.

‘Wonderful’ pomegranate. Semi-soft sweet seeds, bright red fruit.

‘Cranberry’ pomegranate. Semihard sweet seeds, and very productive.

‘Old Cape’ pomegranate. Hard seeds, thick skin.

Peas

Peas do well in your winter garden, and should be sown now. Take care to prepare your beds well before planting. We found several pea seed options for you, all available in garden centres or online. Mangetout type means you eat the whole pod when young. If it is not a mangetout type, the pod will be too tough to eat with the seeds, but the soft fresh or dry seeds (peas) will be edible (called shellingpeatype).

HOW TO GROW PEAS

• Peas thrive in well-draining, moist loam soil. Before planting, loosen the soil and remove all weeds. It’s beneficial to add compost or aged manure to improve soil fertility.

• Sow your pea seed 3 cm deep and 5 cm apart. Sow in rows 60 cm apart. Cover the seeds lightlly and press down.

• Bush type peas do not require any supports but climbing peas do.

• Keep the soil consistently moist, but avoid overwatering. Mulch around the plants to help conserve moisture, suppress weeds and maintain a more even temperature.

• When the plants reach 10 cm in height, it is time to thin them out to retain 30 cm space between each plant.

• The more you harvest your peas, the more they will produce.

Information courtesy of Mayford Seeds.

‘Sugar Magnolia’ tendril pea (livingseeds.co.za) - eat the young pods whole in salads. Purple fleshy pods, edible big tendrils. Climber.

PLANTING BUDDIES

Plant peas this winter with vegetables such as spinach, celery, lettuce, carrots, radishes and turnips.

Antique

‘Mammoth Melting’ sugar/ snow pea (livingseeds. co.za). Climber.

‘Blue Bantam’ pea (livingseeds.co.za) - early heirloom. Compact climber.

pea (livingseeds. co.za) - has beautiful pastel-coloured flowers. Very rare pea, grown for dry peas used in soup. Climber.

‘Cascadia’ pea (livingseeds.co.za) - an early mangetout or shelling variety. Compact, bushy climber. Can be canned and frozen.

‘Greenfeast’ is a bush pea variety, which means it does not need staking. ‘Oregon Sugar Pod’ mangetout peas. Eat pods whole. Heirloom. Climber.

‘Sugar Charm’ pea, a mangetout type. Climber. ‘Blue Shelling’ pea, a Dutch heirloom pea that grows very tall. Climber.

‘Tom Thumb’ pea, an early heirloom variety. Climber.

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TOGETHER, WE WILL GROW

Hedges in the garden are very versatile, whether they are tall or short, trimmed or allowed to grow naturally. They add exciting texture and dimension to the design of a garden.

1 (Previous page): Japanese privet (Ligustrum ibota) was used for all the clipped hedges in the White Garden in Rustenberg Manor gardens. Note the big clipped hedges mimicking tables and the whimsical shape of the tall hedge entrance into the next garden room. (Design: Pietman Diener).

2 (Previous page): Pristine box hedges around beds in the Walled Garden of Stellenberg Gardens, the Cape Town garden of Andrew and Sandy Ovenstone. (Design: David Hicks).

3 A neatly clipped rosemary hedge around a focal point consisting of a pillar and a pot.

4 An eye-catching curved Japanese privet (Ligustrum ibota) hedge and balls hugging an old concrete bench on the Almond Walk in the Rustenberg Manor gardens. (Design: Pietman Diener).

5 A neat Abelia grandiflora hedge, used as edging for a bed of tall roses in the Johannesburg garden of Adele van Staden.

6 A very interesting tiny hedge done by clipping young plants of yesterdaytoday-and-tomorrow (Brunfelsia pauciflora). Flowering hedges should be allowed to flower and can be clipped just after flowering. These cute hedges are growing around tiny lollipop cut azaleas in a subtropical garden.

7 A curved Abelia grandiflora hedge of medium height, used as an edge between a circular lawn and a bed of tall perennials.

8 (Next page): Curvy, tall Ligustrum ibota hedge in the garden of Adele van Staden’s Johannesburg garden.

9 (Next page): A Buxus sempervirens ‘Faulkner’ hedge of medium height has been used in the hydrangea parterre at the back of the historical house of Northwards in Johannesburg.

10 (Next page): ‘My Granny’ roses behind neat Buxus sempervirens hedges in the rose parterre in Avondale Gardens, the lovely Durbanville garden of Ronel Shuttleworth.

Hedges have always been associated with formal gardens, but the combination of clipped hedges around informal groupings of plants are just breathtaking.

WHY A HEDGE?

• A hedge can be used as a security barrier. Certain roses are ideal for an untrimmed security hedge, such as the evergreen Macartney rose ( Rosa bracteata ) or Rosa ‘Stormy Weather’, which is a tall rose

PLANTS SUITABLE FOR

TALL CLIPPED AND UNCLIPPED HEDGES

• Viburnum tinus (medium leaves, white flowers)

• Viburnum odoratissimum (big leaves, white flowers)

• Plumbago auriculata (small leaves, blue or white flowers)

• Abelia grandiflora (small dark green leaves, small cream flowers)

• Abelia ‘Francis Mason’ (small golden leaves, small cream flowers)

• Abelia ‘Lemon & Lime’ (small lime green leaves, small cream flowers)

• Murraya exotica (small leaves, medium fragrant flowers)

• Anastrabe integgerima (indigenous pambati tree, medium leaves)

• Carissa macrocarpa (indigenous num-num, white flowers and red fruit)

• Freylinia tropica (indigenous honeybell bush, small leaves, fragrant small lilac flowers)

• Duranta ‘Gold Mine’ (big golden and green leaves)

• Photinia x fraseri ‘Red Robin’ (big green leaves, new leaves are red)

• Portulacaria afra (indigenous spekboom, small light green leaves, pink flowers)

• Raphiolepis x delacourii (Indian hawthorn, medium green leaves, pink flowers)

• Tecomaria capensis (indigenous Cape honeysuckle, medium green leaves, yellow or orange flowers)

• Searsia crenata (indigenous dune crowberry)

• Pittosporum tenuifolia (small grean leaves)

with very thorny branches and fragrant violet blooms.

• Hedges can be green walls enclosing a garden room.

• A hedge can be planted as a privacy screen on your garden boundary.

• A hedge can hide something unsightly such as a pool pump or a compost heap.

• Hegdes can accentuate or edge flower beds.

• A pathway leading to a garden destination can be lined with hedges.

• Hedges can also be purely decorative. We often see huge square ‘table’ hedges or a series of scattered short hedges in a garden design. Hedges in different colours can be used decoratively together, for instance a tall purple beech hedge behind a lower ‘Sheena’s Gold’ hedge.

• An untrimmed hedge bearing fruit or berries can also be planted to feed birds, and an untrimmed flowering hedge to attract birds and butterflies.

PLANTS SUITABLE FOR

• Ligustrum ibota (Japanese privet, small leaves, white flowers)

• Carissa macrocarpa (indigenous num-num, white flowers and red fruit)

• Barleria repens (indigenous bush violet, medium leaves, pink or purple flowers)

• Duranta ‘Sheena’s Gold’ (small golden/lime green leaves)

• Rhagodia hastata (salt bush, small grey leaves)

• Raphiolepis x delacourii (Indian hawthorn, medium green leaves, pink flowers)

• Rosmarinus officinalis ‘McConnel’s Blue’ (rosemary)

• Portulacaria afra (indigenous spekboom, small light green leaves, pink flowers)

• Berberis thunbergii ‘Rose Glow’ (Japanese barberry, rose-coloured small leaves, yellow flowers)

• Buxus microphylla ‘Faulkner Green Beauty’ (small dark green leaves)

• Barleria repens (indigenous bush violet, medium leaves, pink or purple flowers)

• Helichrysum petiolare (indigenous licorice plant, small grey leaves, yellow flowers)

• Lavandula allardii (Dutch lavender clipped into beautiful hedges)

• Abelia grandiflora (small dark green leaves, small cream flowers)

• Abelia ‘Francis Mason’ (small golden leaves, small cream flowers)

• Abelia ‘Lemon & Lime’ (lime green leaves, small cream flowers)

• Rosemary LOW CLIPPED HEDGES

12

11 Low-growing Abelia grandiflora hedges to frame a curved pathway, in the Johannesburg garden of Adele van Staden. Further down some yellow leaves of Abelia ‘Franics Mason’ can be seen mixed into the Abelia grandiflora hedge.

12 Very crisp Buxus hedges in the Walled Garden of Stellenberg Gardens in CapeTown.

13 Clipped bay leaf trees make beautiful hedges. This one was photographed in Tuscany, Italy.

HEALTHY HEDGES

• A hedge needs to be trimmed every 4-6 weeks in summer.

• Ideally, the top of the hedge should be slightly narrower than the bottom of the hedge, with the front and back of the hedge sloping slightly to allow sunlight to the hedge. This will eliminate bare legs.

• Make sure your hedge shears are sharp. This will ensure that the clipping is neatly done, without a lot of leaves damaged by blunt clipping shears. Always clean your hedge shears after use.

• If your old hedge have developed bare legs, all is not lost. You can always ‘heal’ your hedge by underplanting suitable plants that will close the gap. If the hedge is in the shade, try to plant ferns in under the hedges. Very soon the ferns will fill the gaps. Ferns are happy in shade, and very fashionable at present. You will find a good variety of ferns at your local garden centre. A sunny hedge can be underplanted with Barleria repens.

• Feed your hedge once a month with an organic fertilizer such as Bio Ocean or Agri-Boost.

• Plant hedge plants 25-50 cm apart –the smaller the plant, the smaller the distance.

• To clip a hedge neatly, use string guides on poles.

Purple beech hedge

Espalier YOUR FRUIT

Space is the biggest problem in suburban gardens. But don’t despair, you can still grow fruit by utilising the vertical space. Farmers worldwide have been using the ancient art of espaliering their fruit trees to make harvesting easier and fit in more trees.

Espaliered peach tree

Cordon trees versus espaliered trees

Cordon trees are not trained sideways like espaliered trees, but only upwards in single trunks. Sometimes they are trained diagonally on a wall or fence. In this photo cordon pear trees can be seen on a wall. Cordon trees are planted closer to each other than espaliered trees. The top growth is trimmed off an espaliered tree whereas it is not done on a cordon tree.

Espaliering trees is quite a common practice in agriculture and can be seen on fruit farms in South Africa. Fruit trees such as apples, peaches, plums and pears are espaliered, which means they are planted on supports (usually wires on poles) and trained on those supports to grow sideways, creating flat trees. All the branches growing to the front or back are trimmed off.

In a modern garden our space is often too small to accommodate fruit trees. The solution is to grow fruit trees flat against a wall, on a trellis or wire support.

THE BASICS

• Fruit that can be successfully espaliered: apples, peaches, quinces, nectarines, apricots, plums, figs, pears, cherries, pomegranate.

• Make sure your structure such as the trellis or wire support system is very sturdy, as the tree gets heavy as it grows into a mature tree.

Espaliered plum trees

Espaliered pear trees

• Select trees at your garden centre with as many branches as possible. These branches will be trained sideways onto the structure.

• Espaliered trees grow best on an east-facing wall. North- and west-facing walls are too hot for these trees, and south-facing walls do not get enough sun. If you do not have any east-facing walls, you can plant gum poles 1,5-2 m away from a wall and espalier your trees on wire.

• The secret to successful espaliering lies in the trimming of branches that grow in the wrong direction - keep the shape flat and neat, and train the branches along the structure.

• Traditionally there are different shapes of espaliering, for example the fan and candelabra shapes, but simple sideways training is the easiest way of espaliering. Remember to trim off the top growth and retain the side branches. Horizontal wires should be 50 cm apart and start 50-100 cm above soil level.

• The height of the tree depends on the height of the wall or support structure. Fruit trees can grow as tall as 4-5 m. Fig trees can grow taller than that. Low and medium height espaliered trees such as apples and quinces can be used as fences around garden rooms.

• Some trees, such as fig trees and peach trees, might be difficult to train sideways on evenly spaced wires. Instead of training these trees on wires, just make sure they are

trained flat against a wall, allowing branches to grow in any direction except forwards or backwards.

• Espaliered trees should be kept in shape throughout the year. But take care not to cut back too much in winter, as this will result in less fruit. Rather wait until the blossoms have fallen and fruit have formed before giving a final prune. That way you decide which fruit to keep.

Espaliered fig tree

Espaliered apricot tree

SUSAN’S PIECE OF

heaven

The gardens in Tzaneen are very big, and Susan Vorster’s garden is no exception. I spent one precious hour in her garden and learnt a little about her life-long passion for interesting plants, and her keen eye for garden design.

NEVER FINISHED

Many of the pretty subtropical gardens of the area have similar plants - palm trees, bamboo, bromeliads, ornamental bananas, heliconia, ferns, cycads, crotons, etc. But many of these gardens have huge shaded areas. Susan’s garden has huge trees and shady corners, but it also has a lot of sunny and very hot spots. She had to find hardy plants that woud look exciting grouped together in harsh condition.

It is clear that she put a lot of thought into the choice and design of her garden. She realized she had to work with colour and texture and plants of different heights in

Would you like to show us your garden?

Susan Vorster recently showed me her exotic subtropical garden in Tzaneen.

order for mass planting to stay interesting. Her natural flair can be seen in every garden room she has created. She told me she does not know when she will stop adding to the garden. At the end of a project she always thinks the garden is now finished - and then she has another vision for some corner and it all starts over again.

AUSTRALIAN GRASS TREES

I was impressed by many things in Susan’s gardens - her selection of unusual palm trees, her huge selection of bromeliads, many unusual foliage and flowering plants and some exquisite orchids.

However, she also has a love for the Australian grass tree (Xanthorrhoea australis), a plant that you don’t often see in South African gardens. She has a number of older and young plants growing in her garden. This is an accent plant and it needs space to grow but also to be admired. Some of her grass trees also had

flowers on when I visited the garden, which is a spectacular sight. Susan has been growing grass trees to sell to the public.

COOLING WATER

The garden has a number of ponds and streams. Susan has also added a beautiful bridge and some dry riverbeds. The water cools down the garden in the hotter areas and creates a sense of serenity in the woodland areas. My first glimpse of this wonderful garden was the clever pebble stream she built right across her paved driveway. You actually drive right over it - so clever and refreshing!

I also loved the way she included the garden floor throughout the garden as an important part of the overall design. In many parts the garden floor has an interesting colour or texture which draws the eye to it. It is clear walking through the garden that a pathway is not just a way to walk from point A to B - it should form part of the design.

BRAG BOOK: READER’S GARDEN

Red alternamthera on the right with red phormium in the background and strped Dianella on the left.

Mini mondo grass around pavers make an interesting garden floor.

Australian grass tree

Heliconia Bromeliads and grasses

Australian grass tree with flowers, with various palms ad cycads in the background. Orchid.

Giant bromeliads in a bed of blue evolvulus.

Giant bromeliads in beds of blue evolvulus and red alternathera. Young Australian grass trees in the background.

Ornamental ginger flower.

Orchids hanging outside on wires.

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BULB OF THE MONTH

THE ELEGANCE OF tulips

We are always in awe seeing fresh tulips in our local stores, especially the ones with unusual colours and shapes. Many people think they are difficult to grow, and yet we grew up with tulips in our grandparent’s gardens.

Atulip must be one of the most elegant and sought after flowers I know. I always linger longer at the tulip buckets when I visit Multiflora’s flower shop in Johannesburg, or when I walk past the Woolies flower stands. And I buy them when I can afford them. I also grow them when I can lay my hands on tulip bulbs. Tulips are really easy to grow. We plant treated tulip bulbs in South Africa. Once your treated bulbs arrive, you need to plant them almost immediately, as they are ready to go into the soil and start flowering. They flower very soon after you have planted them.

HOW TO GROW TULIPS

• Choose a position in your garden that offers morning sun but is protected from hot afternoon sunlight.

• If planting in a container, start the container in a cool and dark location. Move the container to a position with morning sun (and afternoon shade) once the plants have started to show above the surface of the soil.

• Wherever you choose to plant, the soil should be well draining; but hold moisture. Add sand to increase drainage and mix

Super Parrot

(by Charles Barnhoorn)

in compost to encourage moisture retention.

• Plant tulips with the pointy end upwards and cover with 5 cm of soil. It is vital to cover with a 2 cm layer of compost mulch. This helps to regulate both soil temperature and moisture content.

• After planting, water your tulips deeply. You should repeat watering every 3 or 4 days until after flowering time – it is very important to never let the soil dry out at root level.

THINGS TO KNOW WHEN GROWING TULIPS IN SOUTH AFRICA:

1 You need to be ready to pre-order tulips in South Africa in March, as you can only order them through Hadeco and their stock is limited.

2 Once you have pre-ordered your tulip bulbs via the Hadeco online shop, you wait a few months to receive your bulbs. These bulbs will be treated, in other words, they are kept in cold storage until about July and then they are sent out to you.

3 Plant your tulips immediately after receiving them to get the best flowers.

4 Unfortunately we cannot keep our tulip bulbs underground for a next season like we do with other bulbs such as liliums, sparaxis, freesias, or dahlias. Your tulip bulbs will have to be taken out and discarded and next season they will need to be replaced. It is therefore a costly exercise, but worthwhile if you plant them in little groups in places where they will be in the spotlight.

5 They can be planted in pots or towards the front of flower beds and they look really attractive planted in groups of single colours or two colours mixed together. You can plant a whole packet (10 bulbs) together as a group. 5

Abba

ROSE SOLUTION

Bonemeal

Bonemeal is a pure, sterilized, powdered organic plant food, ideally suited as a fertiliser. When used regularly it will stimulate and promote healthy root and foliage development on roses, shrubs and trees.

Hydrocache

A moisture retaining carbon enriched gel that one works into the soil to hold on to moisture, so the plant can absorb it as and when it’s needed. Carbon retains microbes, elements and nutrients for sustained slow release to the plant roots and promotes the structure, biological and physical health of the soil.

Rose Food

A specially formulated, concentrated and balanced fertiliser for roses, which, promotes healthy root, plant and flower development and helps build up resistance to foliar diseases.

Organic 3.1.5

An enriched fertiliser which promotes healthy root and plant growth.

CREEPING FOXGLOVE

The creeping foxglove (Asystasia gangetica) is an indigenous, very tough groundcover. It does not need much watering in your garden.

If you are looking for a very tough plant for a dry corner in your garden, the creeping foxglove is your answer. This remarkable plant is ideal for the areas where the soil quality is really poor and you do not have irrigation installed.

Although it thrives even more if it gets a few drops of water occasionally, it will cover open patches in your garden in no time without any special attention. This is wonderful for water retention in your garden, as the plant becomes a living mulch.

However, take care where you plant the creeping foxglove, as it can become invasive in an area where you have other more sensitive water-loving plants such as roses, bulbs or annual flowering plants. It is a super tough groundcover for pavements or embankments where you do not have the time or money to replace plants or babysit your garden.

Asystasia has a pretty trumpet-shaped white flower with purple markings on its throat. It flowers throughout summer, and in hot areas will bloom the entire year, making it attractive for pollinators.

This plant is a traditional medicine used for asthma and as a painkiller. The young nutrient-rich leaves are also edible and can be cooked or stir-fried like spinach.

The plant propagates easily, which means you can make many baby plants if you have huge areas to fill.

ERADICATE

Bugweed

Bugweed ( Solanum mauritianum ) is a giant weed of up to 4 m high that grows everywhere on the roadside and in the beautiful wild meadows where our indigenous plants and grasses try to survive and thrive. It is really more of a shrub or small tree than a normal size weed as we know it. It is a declared (NEMBA Category 1b) invasive plant in South Africa, which means property owners must control and eradicate bugweed on their porperties.

Six of the nine provinces in South Africa have a problem with this invasive weed: Gauteng, Western Cape, Eastern Cape, Limpopo, Mpumalanga and KwaZulu-Natal.

ORIGINS

The plant comes from South America (Brazil, Northern Argentina, Paraguay and Uruguay.

WHY IS IT BAD?

• Bugweed competes with our indigenous plants in riverine and forest margin areas.

• It is a host of the KwaZulu-Natal fruit fly, which means it is a problem for fruit farmers as well as gardeners who grow fruit, and a widespread pest in our country.

• It is competition for trees such as pine and black wattle in commercial plantations, causing stem deformation.

• The hairy leaves and stems can cause asthma and allergic dermatitis and the green fruit are poisonous.

• It has no fodder value to animals.

• It spreads very easily with seeds and it is a very fast grower.

• It has no natural enemies in South Africa.

• It is frost-, drought- and heat-resistant.

HOW DO I GET RID OF IT?

There are many weedkillers on the market that can be used in the eradication of invasives. However, make very sure none of the surrounding good plants will be killed if you use weedkillers.

Alternatively, in your own garden it is easy to just pull out the young plants. If there are isolated bugweeds in your neighbourhood, you can cut them off and spray the stumps with a herbicide. If you see a bugweed tree in your neighbour’s yard, ask him politely to remove it or suggest to him that you will remove it as it spreads rapidly.

In 2019 interesting studies in South Africa were implemented. The theory was tested that bugweed invasions in natural forests and riverine areas should not be eradicated as they will disappear naturally over time as the tree canopy around them develop. It was also noticed that clearing of big patches of bugweed resulted in open, bare patches which invited other even more terrible invasives to grow there.

However, the weed still needs to be destroyed in gardens, suburbs and commercial agricultural land. Become a green hero and

1 drop plant (low water)

2 drop plant (medium water)

3 drop plant (high water)

plant in full sun plant in filtered sun or morning sun and afternoon plant in shade indigenous when the plant flowers

YELLOW dots of sunshine

Yellow is a fantastic colour associated with happiness, joy, hope, sunshine, summer, optimism and friendship.

Plant pockets of yellow in your garden.

‘High Gold’ pincushion (Leucospermum cordifolium x patersonii) (Arnelia)

Sept-Oct 2 x 1,5 m

‘Gold Bunny’ rose

Oct-July Climber

Bougainvillea ‘California Gold’ (Arnelia)

Summer Compact

‘Well Endowed’ bearded iris (René’s Iris garden, 071 911 6901)

Oct/March 50-70 cm

Combine these colours:

Alstroemeria yellow

Summer 50-90 cm

Oct-May 25 x 25 cm

Summer 25 x 50 cm

Carex ‘Evergold’

Spring 30 x 30 cm

Hosta ‘Yellow Spot’

Summer 40 x 30 cm

Ranunculus ‘Mache yellow’ (Nu-Leaf Nursery, 011 794 1350)

Spring size

Summer Up to 2 m unclipped

Summer 30 x 30 cm

Waterlily yellow

Summer

Gazania

Petunia ‘Bees Knees’

Duranta ‘Sheena’s Gold’

Nemesia

Tea & roses:

DiVA DO

JOIN US FOR A DAY OF FUN

Meet us in the most beautiful rose garden in Centurion on Saturday 20 April at 11:00 for our very first DiVA DO. Have tea and muffins, listen to a talk about rose growing and have fun in the sun! Take lots of selfies with friends and family in the garden!

You are invited to attend our very first DiVA DO (short for a very informative garden talk by an expert and a fun kuier and walkabout in a fabulous garden) - at Amani in Centurion.

Amani is a very special remembrance garden filled with pretty roses and other plants – an iconic private garden that will be open for this special event. We will have a chat about the garden and also learn how to grow roses. Now is your chance to learn some trade secrets and much more.

You will receive interesting gifts, freshly made herb infused teas and delectable muffins. There will also be lucky draw prizes! Make sure to book early as we can only take limited bookings!

Important: bring a hat, water, note book and pencil.

DATE: Saturday 20 April 2024

TIME: 10:30 for 11:00 (come early and book for a foot massage in the garden)

PLACE: Amani Garden, 45 Baard Road, Raslouw, Centurion

FEE: R100 per person

SPEAKER: Lizette Jonker

BOOKINGS: Send a whatsapp to 0729898740 to receive banking details. Booking is essential.