Looking back, I can count on my hand several approaches (rather than methods) which have been useful over the 2 decades I've been here on this plot of land called Jessam. These shaped what I did back then; years later, in hindsight, it's possible to see what I might do again, and what I wouldn't repeat. There is the sense of a dynamic dance, integrating one's needs with the immediate environment, rather than a strict management and control of the land 'out there'. A fairly open-minded, eclectic approach and a light hand allows the property to take on its own shape as suits it best.
Subjects I read and absorbed back then (from
books, as internet was yet fledgling) - permaculture, organic farming, natural gardening, re-wilding with indigenous species - all shaped the land here at Jessam. I was particularly enamoured with the idea of 'lazy-style' permaculture gardening, including the no-dig approach and tolerance of weeds.
Implementing some of these ideas have certainly given rise to a low-maintenance, fuss-free, water-wise garden that is full of surprises. These surprises are really offspring of hardy plants that make themselves at home, seeding prolifically with little attention. I like to think that if people disappeared off this patch, a jungle would take over! In my area, a few of these toughies are:
wild dagga of 2 varieties - loved by sunbirds
knobwoods - popping up like weeds
pittisporum- cheesewoods
rhus cherindisis
erythrinas - coral trees
hilarious Lucy (hilaria lucida, or tree fuschia)
and more: butterfly bush, clivias, bulbinellas, arum lillies, cycads, pelargoniums, wild garlics, plumbago, wild honeysuckle, kei apples, num-nums, amaryllis, agapanthas and lilies, red hot pokers. Poetical names suggest a song..!
Then amongst the edible fare the following are thriving stalwarts: tree tomatoes, figs, cherry guavas, lady finger bananas, lemons and citrus, plums, scrambling catawba grapes, pecan nuts, paw-paw, granadillas, avocado (one old beaten tree trying its best), broad beans and other beans, spinaches and salads, artichokes and asparagus, coriander and celery, squashes and beets.
I learnt to note WHAT grows well in one's area, and copy it. Observe local gardens, see what's at home and follow suit- that's half the job done. Trade stout snippings with neighbours and grow what thrives naturally. I had a grand old friend across the road, now deceased, who inspired me as she poked around her bountiful, sprawling vegetable garden with her walker, on crippled legs. Her gifts of seed and cuttings were generous, and instead of tea, she always offered gin with a mischievous grin!
The following books were my bibles in my early days here:
People's Workbook
This historical South African book dates from pre- the 1980s, the 'bad old days' in this part of the world; inherited from home, it stills bears my mother' s name and details. It gives the feeling that vegetable growers and tillers of land are radical activists somehow subverting and undermining the dominant prevailing system. Perhaps that's not too far from the truth. Its art work is distinctive for that period, and amongs its useful subjects are: how to slaughter a chicken (or rabbit, or goat), make water safe to drink, deliver a baby, build a pit latrine, establish co-ops for seed purchase, make sandals and candles, and how to start a library. A true revolutionist bible! The sound advice for growing food would stand head and shoulders in any tome on permaculture. Tucked in between pages on raising tomato seedlings and crop rotation are comic strips on matters of voting, strikes for living wages and land rights. Somehow the book survived being banned.
Bringing nature back to your garden
A fantastic and inspiring guide on how to allow a natural space to evolve in one's backyard, this practical book reveals just how many indigenous plants are available and beneficial to the local insect, bird and animal population. This was my guide book for many years, and these very plants are the ones that now seed themselves freely and spontaneously at Jessam. The bird population is healthy and varied as a result, and each season brings its share of abundant insect and animal life to feast on the flora and fauna. Natural gardening, as they refer to it, has become my cornerstone, and includes 're-wilding'. This implies clearing aliens or invasive weeds, allowing space for the endemic, local wild plants and trees to grow. Wildlife will appreciate this.
Self - sufficiency
An inspiring classic for the smallholder, but unfortunately set in England, so much does not apply to our climate in SA. As a wer-behind-the-ears smallholder, with young children and surprising energy, I became inspired to put my hand to many skills, for better or for worse: jamming, chutney bottling, veggies and herbs, livestock, cheese, bread and soap making, biltong processing, bees, paper making, weaving and concocting home remedies for my guinea pig family and animals. My bottles still bear a suspicious reputation, especially as I often neglected to label them correctly. My son swore that my wildeals tincture sorted his earache on a camping trip and saved the day! It may have just been the alcohol content. Sufficient to say that I no longer aspire to any notion of self-sufficiency, but am grateful for occasional benefits reaped off the land here. This book covers a lot of ground in detail on many different topics pertinent to smallholders.
A garden of plenty
This great little reference book feels local and relevant as it was conceived in Zimbabwe and then taken further here in Grahamstown at the Masibambane self-help project; it is an accessible, practical guide to growing healthy vegetables in this part of the world. I found this book immensely helpful and down-to-earth, appreciating its fuss-free style. I discovered the value of comfrey from this book, and for a time concocted foul-smelling barrels of comfrey manure to throw on the garden. The book has simple illustrations and straightforward advice on animal husbandry and food production.
Permaculture
Anything on the subject of permaculture, borrowed from classic textbooks from the local library at the time, with abundant ideas on layout, zoning and swales, and using livestock to the advantage of the land. There was a time when I ate and slept sheet mulching and experimented with various recipes of compost making. Some ideas implemented were utterly taken swamped by nature which always wins in the end: maintenance of a pond proved too much, and even the pump was consumed by ingrowing tangles of jungles.
The lilies flourish where once was a pond:
Yvette Van Wyk - First aid with herbs - for pets and other animals
The author happened to live at one time on the property next
door here at Stones Hill, where she established an
iconic herb garden and produced 2 books on the subject of herbs and their uses, and another on sewing seeds. The herb books became my well-thumbed informative references, and she
got me going brewing brave tinctures and mixing up startling potions of varying hue and efficacy.
Making the most of indigenous trees
Trees are the best investment to make on any property of size. This is one of my most cherished go-to books which proved immensely helpful in this task; its simple layout appeals to the amateur, giving clear information about trees endemic to specific areas. I could add further useful information about those most likely to get chomped by cows or donkeys. This I discovered the hard way over the years, planting trees that never stood a chance with these animals around. Donkeys will ringbark erythrinas (coral trees) - the bark is a sweet shop feast for them! Looking back over 2 decades on a plot, the most remarkable hallmark feature is the growth of trees; forests have sprung up changing entire outlooks; saplings have tripled or more in size. They are worth giving long-distance thought to when planting out; for instance, it's not a good idea to plant, say, a wild fig near the house. It will consume the house like a triffid.
I have found animals to be the best asset on land, giving plentiful rich
manure, essential for
compost making: chickens, cows, donkeys. Otherwise it's worth shipping the stuff in from time to time. The down side is, these creatures often eat what you're trying to grow, but that's where your dance begins! My team of donkeys make excellent lawn mowers, though for some reason there's always a patch or two they avoid which requires separate shearing, but they do the lion's (?) share of the job. Chickens just have to be kept out of the veggie garden, being partial to scratching and dust baths. Long ago I gave up on pretty flowers in the gardens, and all the poppies, coreopsis, shasta daisies, cosmos and petunias disappeared over time. What grows now is compatible and resilient to these resident animals.
I have a particular plant with a story: a small pot was given as a gift when my daughter was born: a tree begonia, I was told. It went into a large pot on the stoep, and soon grew so big that it had to be divided into two pots. It continued to grow, reaching the height of the stoep roof! Further divisions, finally pieces of plant pushed into the ground all around the house, next to walls and in bushy areas; this prolific plant just keeps growing upward, like a tree, bearing bunches of shameless pretty pink lacy flowers. I give away sticks of it regularly, telling people that it thrives on music - I've noticed it grows best outside the music room. My daughter knows this resilient, beautiful, prolific plant marks the start of her life here. She can take a piece and plant it wherever she lands herself - it will continue to grow!
This much illustrates a mere cupful of my experience here on this patch of land: our small valiant plantings (those which survive) over time evolve in surprising ways to reflect much of ourselves and who we are. They are gifts bringing us great pleasure and teaching us another way to dance on this earth. The very word -
smallholding - perhaps suggests that we can 'hold' with light fingers what we 'have' here.
Liz Campbell is the sole writer and composer of all the published material on this blogsite, unless otherwise stated.
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a collection of songs, poems and prose on the experience of loss, grief and recovery
