From the publishers that brought you the Tim Noakes eating plan, we now have an
equally innovative gardening plan from Cape Town’s talented landscape designer,
Marijke Honig. Marijke was largely responsible for the imaginative biodiversity
garden in the Green Point Urban Park in Cape Town, and she and her landscape
business partner have created several unique gardens using indigenous South
African plants. This fabulous book encapsulates her thoughts and strategy on
South African indigenous garden design.
Marijke has always been moved by the textures, scents and exceptional
diversity of the South African flora. Working as a landscaper, she uses her
knowledge as a botanist and ecologist to think and design with what she calls
plant
palettes – groups of plants which serve a specific purpose (e.g.
screening) or for a particular habitat. This gave her the idea for this book
which contains many of her ‘working’ palettes. So not only does she present her
original and clever ideas, but all the plants mentioned have been chosen
because she knows that they will work and grow well in various situations. With
Indigenous Plant Palettes you start with the advantage of knowing that
years of trial and error weeding out plants that don’t work and testing ideas has
already been done. Only plants that are generally available have been included.
Plant palettes include plants for texture, for cottage style gardens, for
security, for retaining walls, feature trees, for shade, for vertical and for
rooftop gardens, to attract wildlife, for ponds – and there are many more. Each
palette is beautifully presented and easy to put into practice. Recommended plants
have a thumbnail photograph with a short description of its size and growth
habits and needs.
The book has the most gorgeous photos – and even if you have no plans to
revolutionize your garden, it is a beautiful book to own. I defy anyone not to
be seduced into growing edible plants after reading the ‘Edible’ plant palette.
Even the name ‘palette’ conjures up an image of an artist, so you can be the
artist and use Marijke’s palettes to paint a beautiful garden. The book doesn't
come dirt cheap, but considering all the expertise in it and the sheer enjoyment
of reading it, it is worth every cent.
Top of my Christmas wish list and highly
recommended.
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