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nelson mandela bay's family lifestyle
author:
brenda plakonouris & kim tucker
indigenous winter garden
photography:
iky's photographic
issue:
6, winter 2008
As the temperature moderates and the nights start to become colder, we still have a huge amount of blue skies and sunny days. These conditions are just what our aloes have been waiting for. Aloe arborescens which was often used on farms as hedges, because of its multi stemming habit, is an excellent garden choice. They will start to light up the winter evenings with their bright orange glow. In the Eastern Cape we are very privileged to have many endemic (local) aloes, namely the single stemmed Aloe ferox and Aloe Afrikaner. These plants are fantastic as focal plants in the garden, most certainly to replace the ever popular but very wrong and non-indigenous Yukka! There is no reason to have exotic plants as our focal feature within our garden spaces. The Yukka does not even flower - so unlike the magnificence of our aloes in flower. The Aloe ferox has a candelabra shaped flower which appears in early winter. Later, from midwinter to spring, the Aloe Afrikaner will send up tall slender cone shaped flowers from a single plant. Using aloes in our Eastern Cape gardens is of great benefit to the nectar loving birds and insects that rely on these species for their food – they will invite beautiful visitors making your garden even more special. A lot of aloes are now readily available from our local nurseries, after all we should not collect plants from the wild. As the weather becomes cooler, but still sunny, we can have many days of good gardening. This is a good time to have a look at your garden layout. The ideal time to transplant any shrub or large plants which you feel should be moved. Obviously this is also the time to remove all alien invader plants or unwanted exotics, to be replaced with indigenous plants. In an enclosed suburban garden, airflow around the plants and between the walls and plants, is extremely important. Generally speaking it is advisable to prune branches that are close to the ground, to lift the plant and also branches which are blocking the airflow and light against boundary walls. Pruning at this time of year is recommended as the plants growth does slow down during the cooler months. Pruning and trimming of your shrubs will help to maintain the overall design of your garden. As indigenous gardeners we do not subscribe to overtly trimmed gardens but prefer a wilder look. That does not mean an untidy or scruffy garden. Our pruning aims to enhance the general health and longevity of our plants. We allow the garden more light and air by pruning sensibly. In Nelson Mandela Bay we do have to contend with our westerly cold fronts, so planting endemic trees in groups throughout the garden can help to protect the garden from the cold, strong winds. We recommend the Celtis Afrikaner (white stinkwood) as the tree to plant in your north facing garden, as it is our only local semi deciduous tree. It will therefore allow for the winter sunlight and keep the house cool in summer. In other areas of the garden where trees are needed, you could consider using Cussonia spicata (cabbage tree) or Podocarpus falcatus (Outeniqua Yellowwood) as your feature trees. You could also group a single species for more impact. When choosing shrubs for the indigenous garden, grouping again is of utmost importance as we are always striving for a natural look. Once again, we are spoilt for choice. Groupings of Tecoma capense (Cape honeysuckle) with colors ranging from pale yellow to orange to red, look spectacular in full sun. The orange type makes a spectacular tallish hedge, whereas the light yellow can be used as an intermediate shrub. Another star of the show is Leonotis leonurus (wild dagga) because they flower a brilliant orange throughout winter. Needless to say the lesser double collared sunbirds will be busy feasting on this bounty. Another all year round favorite that comes into it's own in winter, is the Euryops daisy. This shrub is extremely hardy and flowers abundantly, providing constant color. It does however need pruning and deadheading regularly. It is most certainly a plant that will provide color for many years, if looked after. Our winter season most certainly is the time to really commit yourself to taking out all your AIP's and possibly relegating some of your exotics to the compost bin. This will give you an opportunity to really transform your garden into a 100% indigenous paradise.
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