Weekend Argus (Saturday Edition)
Celebrate the Cape’s unique floral heritage
Castle hosts Cape Town Flower Show
CAPE Town is gearing up to host a Chelsea-style Flower Show this month and visitors can get their hands dirty in series of workshops and demonstrations.
The four-day event, of which Weekend Argus is a media partner, seeks to celebrate the Western Cape’s unique floral heritage.
It takes place at the Castle of Good Hope from Thursday, October 27, to Sunday, October 30.
Twenty show gardens will be featured, along with talks by the likes of gardening expert Keith Kirsten, a cut flower arrangement competition called MasterFlorist and the latest in gardeners’ accessories. Jill Manson, a floral communication expert from Johannesburg, will host an hour-long workshop at the Bakhuys on October 28.
“People can choose flowers they resonate with and discover what unique meaning this has for their lives,” she said.
“It will also be a very informative workshop with regards to flowers and their unique essences and stories each have and will also be filled with tips on buying flowers and their longevity.”
Manson said she became interested in flowers after quitting her career in advertising.
“After a few years in the advertising field, I decided to leave and search for a more meaningful vocation, which I thought I would find in the UK.
“Before I left I went to the KwaZulu-Natal Midlands and it was on a walk in the Kamberg, I had an of inspiration.”
She had the idea of using flowers to help people better communicate their feelings and emotions, to themselves and others. Manson’s workshop costs R300, including entry to the flower show, or R150 excluding entry.
Marcelle Warner, of Vertical Veg, will host two workshops on October 28, and October 30. Her workshops cost R50. She will demonstrate how to plant a vegetable pocket panel and put together recipes using food grown in vertical panels.
Warner said vertical gardens were a worldwide trend. “With the increase of people living in smaller and smaller urban spaces, so the awareness of gardening in smaller spaces has grown,” she said.
jan.cronje@inl.co.za