Tree tales

In this garden, the trees have their own back stories.

Over the years, Hennie and Jean planted numerous trees to celebrate major events – from the birth of a grandchild to the end of World War II. The first tree they planted together was a California fan palm (Washingtonia filifera) in 1939.

The two karee trees (Searsia lancea syn. Rhus lancea) in the photo (right) are known as the “tangled trees”

(also the name of a Van Loveren wine range).

In the early 1940s, Jean wrote to a nursery in Natal, asking them to send her a hardy tree. When the sapling, which at the time cost the equivalent of 15c, arrived at Klaasvoogd Station, the farmers were convinced it was none other than the well-known karee common to the area. Jean insisted it was something else and planted her Rhus lancea on the property. Not to be outdone, Hennie picked a twig from a karee tree growing by the river and planted it next to Jean’s new tree.

Over the years, the two karee trees became intertwined and neither Jean nor Hennie was willing to take out their tree. Jean always said these two trees symbolised their love for each other. >>

When each grandchild was born (there were 11 such milestones!), Jean planted a special cycad. Over= time, each one was lifted and given to the grandchildren’s parents. Only Bussell’s cycad remains as he and Anne-Marie live next door; it boasts beautiful cones every year.

The pomegranate (Punica granatum) is the oldest tree in the garden; it still bears fruit, which is either handed out to visitors or used in juices and salads. It was planted in about 1930 and was part of a hedge that used to form a kraal. It’s the only one of those trees still remaining.