AUCKLAND PARK GARDENS

There are 14 hectares of verdant lawns over which some of the oldest oak trees in the country stand sentinel. There are exotic Copper beach, Camphor, Ginko and Cherry trees mixed harmoniously with indigenous Dombeya, Wild Peach and Olive.

Stroll through the quintessentially english Rose Garden, the rose petals resplendent in colours ranging from deep burgundy to blushing pink to startling white. The gentle sound of the water fountain adds to the tranquility of this lovely garden.

Walk the narrow pathway through the South African Veldgrass Garden where indigenous grasses and shrubbery stand at shoulder height on either side. Pay your respects to the fallen at the War Memorial Garden. Identify the wide range of herbs in the Herb Garden. Lastly, there’s the ethereal Cloud Garden, ideal for the perfect wedding photograph. Words cannot do justice to the experience that awaits you. Take a walk through the gardens. It’s an enriching experience.

The gardens offer an entirely different experience to the bushveld environment at Woodmead and yet the environmental challenges are just as great. This is what the Club is doing to fulfill its environmental obligations with regard to the Auckland Park gardens:

Pesticides: Exceptionally low use of pesticides. Rosechem is limited to the Rose Garden and RoundUp for weeds on the paving

Fertilisers: We’re moving away from synthetic fertilisers to organic fertilisers (eg Vermicast which is essentially worm manure). This is generated on site and Life Gardens (our gardening contractor) refer to it as “high-nutrient fertiliser gold”.

Water wise: To reduce water usage, one needs to improve soil quality. This is being done with good composting and organic fertiliser. Once the soil is of a high quality, mulching is done. Mulching helps reduce loss of moisture through evaporation which in turn, means less watering.