This weekend gardening types will be rubbing their hands – and green fingers – together gleefully in anticipation of the fun and activities presented by the annual Grahamstown Flower Festival.
This weekend gardening types will be rubbing their hands – and green fingers – together gleefully in anticipation of the fun and activities presented by the annual Grahamstown Flower Festival.
Besides the main attraction of the Festival’s garden competitions, this year the Makana Botanical Gardens will host commercial garden stalls, workshops, talks and an art exhibition, with live music thrown in for good measure. There’ll be a restaurant and outdoor food stalls, too.
This year’s main sponsors are Pam Golding Properties, JoJo Tanks, Makana Brick and Hobson Co, and they’re no doubt hoping for a bumper event with thousands of feet passing through the gates over the next two days.
Once inside, one can head to the Pam Golding Hall, normally the Rhodes University Environmental Learning Centre, where the flower competition and children’s section are located.
Local primary school pupils have been encouraged to enter the children’s section, and once again there will be keen competition among youngsters allowing their imaginations to run wild arranging their displays using flowers, plants, ornaments and props.
Garden stalls are set to be spread across the expansive lawns adjacent to the quaint Ornee Cottage. Visitors can choose from more than 30 stalls displaying and selling a wide range of gardening tools, JoJo water tanks, outdoor furniture, garden ornaments and water features as well as a wide selection of seeds, seedlings and shrubs, not forgetting natural products – cheeses and honey.
Live music will be provided by the rousing sounds of the St Andrew’s College pipe band from 12.30pm-1.30pm on Saturday, and the rhythmic strains rendered by the St Andrew’s Prep marimba band from 11.30am on Sunday.
Festival hours are from 9am-5.30pm on Saturday, and from 9am-4pm on Sunday. Admission is R20 for adults and R10 for students and children.
Festival-goers will each receive a Neutrog shopping bag containing a copy of The Gardener/Die Tuinier magazine and Neutrog or Mycoroot products upon paying the entrance fee at the gate.
This year’s guest speaker, Di-Di Hoffman, has been causing quite a buzz around town. From Pretoria, he is known as South Africa’s ‘Blogging Herb Man’ and is a director of the SA Herb Academy – the online herbology learning centre. Hoffman also owns Bouquet Garni Nursery, the country’s top potted herb growers.
He will talk on “How to dream, plan, do your own organic food garden” at 3pm on Saturday, and “Seven disasters waiting to happen when cooking with herbs and spices” at 11am on Sunday. Entrance fee is R50 (pensioners R30) per talk. One talk audience member will win a JoJo Slimline water tank from a lucky draw.
JoJo Tanks will also donate a large rainwater tank as a prize for the township school winning the vegetable garden category of the flower competition.
On the Festival’s workshop programme, Nikki Kohly and Mike Powell will present “Setting up a thicket garden in five easy steps” at 11.30am on Saturday (R20), while sisters Milagre, 14, and Zoe, 11, Lang will take their audience through “Worm farming for kids” at 11am on Sunday (R10 for children).
Festival programmes are available today from Pam Golding Properties at 51 African Street, or from Cathy Braans at 24 African Street. More Festival information can be accessed at www.grahamstownflowerfestival.co.za.
