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Photographs Greg Cox l Production Marian van Wyk
The garden created by this artistic couple is one of surprises and contrasts. Not only is this lush oasis unexpected in the quiet, dusty streets of Nieu-Bethesda, but its formal Victorian layout – with straight gravel paths and demarcated flowerbeds – is even more of a surprise. The garden is kept lush with leiwater that is supplied to residents via furrows running through their properties (similar to those along the town’s streets), while the beds are filled with hardy plants that can withstand the harsh winter frosts. And the artworks on a wall decorated with mosaics – a woman with jet-black hair, a long-legged rabbit, a variety of pots – are not your standard roadside craft purchases.
Fine gravel ensures that the pathways are easier to walk on. “We prefer the warm stone colour over the usual grey, and love the textures and natural look of our garden.” The two shrubs on the right are ‘Iceberg’ roses and the shrub on the left is a Chinese snowball (Viburnum macrocephalum ‘Sterile’); it is drought-tolerant and bears green blooms that turn white with time.
