If you are looking for some new ideas for your garden, then Londolozi’s Landscape Artist – Kenneth Jazi – has some great tips for our readers as we move into spring.
Although Kenneth’s tips are specific to indigenous South African gardens, the principles can be applied to all gardens. By the way, 1 – 7 September is Arbor Week in South Africa – so join in and add a couple of indigenous trees to your garden.
Here are some of Kenneth’s tips for creating a bushveld garden this spring:
- Add Texture
Create interest and colour by adding a variety of textures to your garden. Stones and rocks of different sizes and colours are great fillers. Practically they help to create areas that look neat and – as long as you include a weed underlayment – stones are a great solution to combatting weeds. Kenneth also uses old tree trunks, large rocks, stone walkways and pots to create his lowveld gardens.
Kenneth suggests looking for “difficult spots” in your garden and then thinking about how you can use materials and natural colours to create something that catches the eye, but is still low maintenance. Have a look at how stones, rock and wood create layers of texture. A great example is the over-sized vase on the corner of Varty Camp deck: an earthy pot combined with rusty coloured stones.
- Don’t Be Afraid to Focus on a Single Family
Visitors to Pioneer Camp’s suite one will have seen the incredible (we’re talking one-of-a-kind) aloe garden that Kenneth has created along the walkway. The garden consists of six species of aloes, all different sizes and shapes. Interestingly, apart from a handful of euphorbias in-between, there are no other plant species in Kenneth’s aloe masterpiece. “Don’t be afraid to showcase one family in an area of your garden”, says Kenneth. “When it’s done properly, it’s a beautiful and distinctive feature.”
There are more than six aloe species on the path leading to the Pioneer Camp suites, including aloe africana, arborescens, vanbalenii, andongensis, chabaudii and marlothii. You can safely say that this is one of South Africa’s most exquisite aloe gardens. If you are keen to create something similar at home, remember that – as a rule of thumb – almost all aloe species need ample light.
- Know Your Screening Plants
At a lodge, we use plants to create privacy, as well as to screen buildings that are not part of the guest experience. These are plants that fill out and, at home, they can be used along walls, or along fences. They can also be used as “fillers” – kind of like the “bulk” that is sometimes used along borders. Some can even be used as hedges. Kenneth uses a lot of the indigenous plumbago, dovialus caffra and strelitzia along Londolozi’s pathways.
If there is a structure in your garden that you would like to mask, or if you would like some more privacy, plumbago (top right) is a deep leafy green shrub with a purple flower. It can also be grown along walls and fences to add depth (you may have seen it along the Founders external boma fence). For a plant that evokes real “bushveld” character, then experiment with dovialus caffra (left) along pathways.
- Add a Couple of Lowveld Classics to Your Garden
Remember that if you invest in aloes, they enjoy sunlight, as well as soil that is well drained. Below are three more bushveld plants that are great for indigenous gardens.
An iconic bushveld tree is the sjambok pod (far left). The pods are distinctive and – once again – add texture and interest. You might also try the impala lilly (centre top) and the kudu lilly (centre bottom and bottom right). Both of these plants bring colour in winter and the kudu lilly’s spiny branches add a sculptural effect. Kenneth has his own nursery at Londolozi and this week, he harvested the seeds from his Founders camp kudu lilly garden (top right).
As a final tip, for gardeners who would like to attract more birdlife to their indigenous gardens, Kenneth recommends the following trees: 1) cape fig; 2) tassel-berry tree and 3) live-long tree.
Which indigenous trees and plants would you recommend planting during Arbor Week? And will you be planting any yourself? We would love your advice – please leave your thoughts in the comments section below. You are also welcome to leave any questions that you may have for Kenneth.
Kenneth Jazi is mad about indigenous plants. Much of his knowledge comes from month-long expeditions into the bushveld with nothing but a tent and a book (bible) on the indigenous trees and plants of Southern Africa. You are welcome to leave questions for Kenneth in the comments section below.
Fantastic blog. Thanks so much Ryan and Kenneth. I love gardening and try to plant mostly indigenous. It grow so much easier, and attract loads of birds. Planted the boabab out last month, hope it counts for arbor week, and the long tail cassia (sjambok pod) seeds came out, got 2 small seedlings already. I will definitely ask Kenneth a few questions when I visit.
Great stuff Marinda. We are lucky to live in a climate that allows for such beautiful and diverse gardens. Good luck with the Baobab.
Thank you Ryan and Kenneth. I am feeling very inspired. Caitlin and I are in the process of creating our own indigenous bushveld garden and completed the first session today. I’ll keep you updated on our progress.
Can’t wait to see some photos Kate and Caitlin!
Thanks Kenneth & Ryan for this interesting blog. My garden in Alberton is 90% indigenous with a lot of aloes, that have not rotted from the rain, but I treasure them & so do the birds. I do have a paw paw & avo & both have been very generous. Look forward to Kate & Caitlin’s pictures.
Hi Wendy. I am going to start asking the experts which indigenous trees are best for attracting the birds … look out for a blog. Let us know which of your trees the birds love most. Ryan
Thanks Ryan, I might add that my garden is 400sqm & I have two Cotoneaster trees that flower, attract bees & butterflies, then get lovely red berries, which the Mousebirds, bulbuls, barbets, grey loeries,glossy starlings, weavers & more love to eat. A big plus for them, but they are not indigenous, but I enjoy watching the bird parade 🙂
Interesting blog Ryan and Kenneth, and thanks for all the great tips! I love gardening as well and will definitely try your tips out Kenneth. The gardens are beautiful at Londolozi and must be difficult to maintain with all the Nyala close by, interested in all the plants…how do you keep everything from being eaten?!
Hi Jill. It’s a pleasure 🙂 To answer your question, one of the many upsides of aloe species is that they are unpalatable and often dangerous to eat. Hence Kenneth’s strategy of incorporating more and more of this species. As for the rest of the plants, they’re all part of a natural environment, which means they are prey for some 🙂
Thanks Ryan, I didn’t know that about aloe plants. It’s great to learn something new. Kenneth is certainly keeping the gardens beautiful there!
Hi Kenneth
I am struggling with a large open area under trees and nothing seems to grow there.. and whatever shoots up the nyalas eat,or warthogs dig up. We dont have fencing around the property to keep anything out. What can I plant that will grow under trees, that is indigenous and the nyala wont eat? Willemien from Hoedspruit