Staff Training project for GRBG Employees funded by the S A Lottery 2002/3 & 2004/05


This funding enabled the GRBGtrust to run a series of training workshops in 2003/04/05, which have already shown very positive results, for the permanent gardeners. William Mfekane & David Nikelo have been with us from 1996, Stanford Mbewuzana & Willem Cupido have joined them as full-time gardeners. Sylvia Zemva came in as trainee horticulturist and Notombeko Mgamle was employed by the garden volunteers (with the proceeds of plant sales) as a much needed weeding lady! In January 2005 Mitch Krog joined us as Garden Manager (as well as Computer specialist!), Wally Geyeza was taken on in mid 2005 as Garden Supervisor / head gardener. The 4 permanent under-gardeners each have a specific area of the garden for which they are responsible. They are developing commitment and pride in their own areas.

Aims

• Institute an effective and intensive training & empowerment program for GRBG employees. Teach present employees horticultural, plus general & personal management skills.
• Results of the practical application to be documented and any necessary changes to the methodology of management in the garden implemented to ensure future conservation and successful growing and propagating of local flora.
• Access the newly acquired skills of the Bot Garden gardeners to offer training to unemployed aspirant gardeners and horticulturists as well as to labour and gardeners in Municipal employment and on large developments and golf estates etc. Enabling them to understand and practice the best possible management of the local vegetation and environment. NB. this has been identified by many role-players and conservationists, as an extremely important need in this area.
• Hone the knowledge and skills of the very few people in the country who could meaningfully help with the drawing up of training brochures and manuals.

Outcomes

• An effective and motivated workforce able to manage their own time, tasks and finances - with very real and valuable skills taking them & the GRBG into the future.
• A well-structured and certificated training scheme developed for other employed and unemployed gardeners / horticulturists.
• A relevant and effective syllabus developed for training

Many Thanks to the Lottery for making all this possible!

2006 still hangs in the balance and we hope that our new proposals will be successful so that we can keep all these valuable people on and ensure their jobs for a while longer.

In June 1998 the Garden Route Botanical Garden Trust set out to transform the historically significant but under-utilized Municipal Van Kervel Nature Reserve of 12ha into an impressive indigenous botanical garden representative of the flora of the Southern Cape. Since a garden is never 'complete', development is necessarily an ongoing process Physical work in the garden effectively only began in January of 1999 after an extensive planning period.
Progress in the Garden to date

• Major clean up and eradication of alien species and clearing of pathways around dam areas.
• Excavation and partial restoration of the historical water furrows and an old water feature.
• Construction of the Levitzky Rescue Garden (now the Cultivated and Scented beds)
• Planting of over 700 trees over the period, with the close involvement of a wide range of local schools during Arbor Weeks.
• Planting of dam banks and garden beds around the main dam.
• Attractive and permanent pathways and access roads covering the southern 75% of the garden, with wheelchair access ensured. (funded by the Rowland and Leta Hill Trust, administered by WWF/SA).
• Clearing and planting of an attractive water feature surrounding a natural spring and seepage area.
• Design and planting of a series of "Welcome Beds' at the entrance to the garden.
• Erection of striking and informative signage at the entrance as well as six stone plinths inside the garden with interpretive signage about the history, biomes and ecology of the garden. (Funded by Leta & Roland Hill Trust and The Green Trust)
• A succulent rockery has been established near the main garden entrance by Selma Wastell helped by David Nikelo. Only ill-health prevented her from continuing much further along the railway line in 2006 - we thank her for all the time and love she has put into this project.
• A roofed "living succulent herbarium" has been completed at the Moriarty Centre with a special donation from a central Karoo farmer of many rare and endangered species. A new section has been started - a new Crassula collection in shallow Bonsai pots will be put on display during the Wildflower Show 2006 in October.
• Planting is ongoing of the Biome Gardens and in particular the Southern Outeniqua Fynbos slope and the Coastal duneveld are both looking really good. Other biomes being planted up include Succulent Nama Karoo, Coastal Mossel Bay Karoo, Renosteros, Coastal Limestone Fynbos,
• A series of Fynbos Mounds demonstrating the various fynbos types of the region have been started.

These two features which are very nearly completed provide an innovative and exciting attraction for George. The strong design of the two structures can be seen clearly from the trains and the Powervan for almost the entire journey up and down the south side of the Outeniqua mountains - in fact they can even be seen from aircraft flying overhead. A unique landmark for our town!

Once again, thanks to Lottery funding we have been able to complete the fencing and planting of hedges for the maze, we will be starting to clip these in 2006 and then it will really start to look good. We have also almost completed the planting of medicinal plants on the Mound. The medicinal plants being grown on the Mound are being harvested, dried and packeted for sale or made into IMITHI First Aid remedies. These are all available at the Moriarty Centre Office (click for location) - open on weekday mornings from 9am to 12.30pm. Click here for Info on our Imithi Project

The rich cultural heritage of the Khoisan / Khoikoin clans, the Attakwas, Outeniquas, Kwenas & many more, lives on in their descendants. Their history and indigenous knowledge are of great importance to the South Africans of today.

The southern Cape is especially rich in Rock Art & Habitation sites - the tree species found most often near these caves have been used for hedging the Maze. All bear edible fruit and are useful in many ways & they must have been carried from cave to cave. The seeds would have self-sown directly below the caves and overhangs.

Indigenous medicinal lore is still very much alive today, and is represented by the plants on the Medicinal Mound. Our IMITHI Amayeza project is documenting this knowledge with the help of local communities & making it available to local clinics, community initiatives and empowerment groups.

Khoisan medicinal knowledge was passed on to both Xhosa and European settlers and has been stirred into a fascinating cultural mixture which is represented here on the Medicinal Plant Mound.

Plants ion the mound are propagated for sale or distribution and harvested and dried for sale to the public and to be used in the production of the remedies identified as useful and in demand.

In Africa today, it makes sense to promote the use of culturally appropriate traditional home remedies for primary health care.

80% of the world's peoples still use traditional plant remedies. Far from dying out and being forgotten, they are becoming more accepted, and a source of pride to traditional users. There is a tremendous amount of traditional knowledge and vast and exciting cultural- and bio-diversity

Khoisan Rock shelter - after much searching we finally found Tom Nel who has built us a magnificently authentic looking structure - planting around and on top of it will be started as soon as we get enough rain in 2006 to do so!

Meanwhile this project is stirring up some controversy in the local press as people who walk regularly in the garden feel it is giving shelter to vagrants. We do have a group of "Bosslaapers" who have lived in and near the garden since long before we started to develop it, they do pose a problem in that they drink a great deal and leave their bedding and belongings lying around - in fact they used to do their washing in the dam and hang their sadly tatty pieces on the trees and bushes! BUT they have never harmed anyone yet and all evidence suggests they are NOT responsible for vandalism. In fact have themselves been attacked on more than one occasion by young white school boys from the neighbourhood. We have tried everything to get them to move to housing made available for them by the municipality, we tried talking and reasoning with them at first, we even at one stage futilely tried to employ them! police have chased them out, we have chased them out, we have employed at great expense security firms at night to chase them out, - BUT they are absolutely determined to remain, and say they can't sleep anywhere else but under the stars (the Cave unfortunately gives them shelter when it rains even though it has a very hard and uncomfortable floor with develops puddles!). It also incidentally gives shelter to sundry lovers looking for privacy and school children drinking, smoking and perhaps drugging too!! WHAT DO WE DO ABOUT THIS!?

It is simply not acceptable that anyone should be expected to NOT build and making beautiful things just because they might be utilised by the wrong type of people or for the wrong purposes. Our signage has been repeatedly vandalised but we simply put up more (when we can afford to) because we refuse to be beaten by undisciplined young thugs whose parents do not know or perhaps care what they are doing at night. NOTE that these are NOT the "Bosslaapers", they are vandals from priviledged homes who are out of control. We feel that this is both a neighbourhood problem as well as a municipal and social problem - not by any means confined to the garden or even to George - BUT we MUST deal with it in our neighbourhood, and form a cohesive group to do so - Contact us if you wish to join our "Guardians of the Botanical Garden"