floral compass

Gardens Editor Heidi Bertish discovers an indigenous garden and thriving ecosystem planted as an ode to our local plant heritage

- Heidi Bertish

Located on the south-western tip of South Africa, the Cape Floristic Region is one of the most special places in the world for plants. While it represents only the tiniest sliver of the African continent – less than 0.5 per cent, to be exact – it has been declared a UNESCO World Heritage Site and recognised as one of the greatest centres of terrestrial biodiversity in the world. Thriving in an area equivalent to a single scale on a crocodile’s tail, the Region is home to an astounding 20 per cent of the floral species on the entire continent.

With a vision deeply embedded in South African plant heritage, this family garden, in the heart of the Cape Floristic Region, grew from an intimate connection to the endemic plant life of the area. ‘We had been looking for property in Stellenbosch for a few years. While my husband examined the house, I saw the huge rock at the end of the garden and was sold instantly. That large granite boulder holds ancient energy,’ says the owner.