Water and nutrients

Initially, Kobus and Retha started gardening with cuttings and bulbs that they got from friends and family. Over time, they began to cultivate their own cuttings.

Later, they even set up a hydroponic tulip nursery on Le Domaine.

“Kobus was an entrepreneur and saw the opportunity to grow tulips hydroponically in South Africa. We visited several greenhouse farms in the Netherlands before embarking on this project. It was a risk, but with hard work and dedication, it developed into a successful business. These days, my son Adriaan runs the nursery on behalf of the international company Bloomia and there are tulips ready to harvest every day of the year,” says Retha. (See page 108.)

All the water from the hydroponic tulip nursery is stored in tanks and re-used in the garden. The nutrients added to the water for the tulips work wonders in the garden. Extra fertiliser and nutrients are therefore not needed and no poisons are used. Homemade compost is applied to the garden on a regular basis.

The stream that runs past the back of the house adds an air of tranquillity to that part of the garden. “It was our favourite spot in which to hang out. In summer, we would cool off in the stream and keep watermelons cold in the water. The garden around the stream evolved naturally without much planning. The old oaks provide shade, while wild irises, arum lilies, watsonias, ferns and bush lilies add colour beneath the trees.

Indigenous smelly spurflower is a hardy plant that forms an excellent groundcover. It grows easily from cuttings and bears lilac blooms for months on end.

Cuthbert Kangwira takes care of the garden at Le Domaine.