African Design Magazine September 2016 | Page 37

Landscaping SALI Awards PING WITH THE SPIRIT OF PLACE When the estate was visited in August, fields of naturally occuring salmon pink to orange Aloe greatheadii variety davyana were in flower in and around the site, and the dark twisted trunks of the locally indigenous Rhus (synonym: Searsia) lancea (Kareeboom) trees were in sharp contrast to the pale winter veld. A basic principle of the Monaghan Farm development is to conserve and restore the grassland, patches of which comprise the endangered Egoli Granite Grassland type. All homeowners are required to sow the Monaghan Mix of veldgrasses supplied by MayFord on not less than 50% of their stands and to harvest rainwater from their roofs...no boreholes are permitted. The value of water is strongly emphasized on the farm (even though municipal water is available as a top-up during dry spells) as is the ecological value of the grassland, hence the requisite seed mix. Carol Knoll africandesignmagazine.com 37