south africa

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Adene's Flower Farm

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I first discovered Adene’s Flower Farm through Instagram where her stunning pictures of gigantic flowers made me wonder if these could possibly be real. Since we love beautiful and inspiring places we naturally included Adene’s Flower Farm in our itinerary.

About the Farm

The Flower Farm is situated on a farm called Platvlei Fruit Farm which is a family farm that was purchased by the Nieuwoudts in 1937. Adene Nieuwoudt, the driving force behind the business and beautiful face of the Instagram account, started the flower farm in 2016 after working as a photographer in the wedding industry. The farm has grown considerably over the past few years and is now 5 hectares in size and includes over 200 different varieties of flowers.

The Products

The Flower Farm is dedicated to producing high quality, beautiful and long lasting fresh cut flowers and foliage. They sell their produce (also seeds and tubers) directly to the public, through their website and at markets including the Oranjezicht Market at the Cape Town Waterfront every Saturday and Sunday. This year they will be exporting their Dahlia tubers to Chile, Namibia and Zambia.

Visiting the Farm

The Farm is open to the public for visits from the middle of December to the first week of April on Saturdays and Sundays. A small fee is payable upon entering and includes a map and packet of seeds to take home. There is a coffee shop that serves drinks and light beverages and seating areas under the Oak trees. The tunnels hold a variety of different plants and name boards with a QR code can be found at most flowers. The QR code on these boards can be scanned to link to the website where you can find more information about the flower or add it to your wishlist.

Coffee shop with seating below the Oak Trees

We enjoyed ambling our way through the tunnels bursting with colour and beauty.

For a botanical experience that any flower lover will appreciate a visit to this flower farm in Wolseley in the Cape is highly recommended. Adene is inspirational in her approach of running a business while still making time for her family and I must say that seeing the joy that this brings her it makes me even more certain that #plantsmakepeoplehappy :)

 www.adeneflowers.co.za

Instagram @adeneflowers

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What Would Your Garden Look Like Around The World?

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Garden design is more than just maintenance, it’s about self-expression and protecting cultural traditions. Around the world, different flowers and plants have different symbolic meanings. In some countries, the arrangement of a garden might also be symbolic or it might be for practical reasons such as the weather. Because of the varying climates across the world, different species of flower, plant and tree will grow and provide communities with different resources including food and styles of furniture. All these different features of a garden provide an insight into another lifestyle and culture. 

The team at 4 Everdeck have created the following infographic with information and images of the gardening habits and traditions followed by different countries around the world. The infographic provides insight into different cultures and might also give you some unique ideas for your own garden at home!

By Katherine Myers

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What is ILASA?

ILASA logo

 If you are working in the green industry in South Africa you will most likely have heard of ILASA (Institute for Landscape Architecture in South Africa). ILASA  is a voluntary organisation that is mandated to grow and promote the profession and concept of landscape architecture in the South African environment.

 Goals of ILASA (taken from their website)

·         Advance dignity and competence of the profession

·         Uplift previously disadvantaged societies

·         Advancement of professional competence through education

·         Support sustainable ecological planning and management

·         Support of public involvement in planning and design process

·         Promotion of excellence through peer review recognition

·         Increase visibility of the profession to government and society

·         Promotion of the landscape architecture profession

ILASA shares information to its members that is relevant to the landscape architecture profession as well as highlighting national and regional events that are of interest. There is also a page on their website where companies post job vacancies so if you are looking for employment as a landscape architect this would be a good place to start.

I love ILASA because it is a means of holding the landscape architecture community together. It provides opportunities to acquire CPD points through various events which are educational and enjoyable. Events are often an opportunity for old friends and ex-colleagues to see each other and catch up. All the events are arranged by the regional organizing committees (Gauteng, KZN and Cape) and this includes the conference and awards function.

I volunteered on the Gauteng committee for a number of years and really enjoyed the interaction with other landscape architects as well as growing relationships with the other committee members. I encourage other landscape architects to become involved and volunteer their time towards the ILASA committee so the load can be shared and the benefits can be enjoyed by all.

ILASA provides valuable opportunities for networking, business connections and experiences that are enriching and educational and it is worthwhile to be a member.

 Visit https://www.ilasa.co.za/ for further information.