I’m a succulent-lover    As Winter slowly approaches (Autumn is definitely in the early-morning air and leaves are also slowly starting to flutter down), the Aloes will now start flowering all over the world, even during summer in Europe and the USA. Their internal clock is set to ‘Winter South Africa’, which is actually from May to July, but this Aloe vera has decided that it’s cool enough in the mornings to start wearing her Winter finery.  ? Most Aloes are indigenous to South Africa and I do think that Aloe vera, well-known for its medicinal properties, is one of the bett ..read more

My Crassula multicava (Fairy Crassula) is in full bloom. It is a neatly-growing evergreen low-growing plant that rarely exceeds a foot tall in the landscape and is even lower when grown in dry shade. Indigenous to South Africa, this Crassula occurs naturally along forest margins, riparian areas and within coastal vegetation from Mpumulanga (Eastern Transvaal), Natal to the Eastern and southern Cape provinces. The beautiful petite flowers, which are pink in bud and then open to charming little white stars that are very showy as a spray above the foliage on reddish stems, appear in Winter.  ..read more

(Austrocylindropuntia subulata) . Family: Cactaceae (kak-TAY-see-ee) Genus: Austrocylindropuntia (oss-troh-sil-in-droh-PUN-tee-uh) Species: subulata (sub-yoo-LAH-tuh) . In February 2014, my dear friend Elizabeth Kendall sent me a tiny piece of this Eve’s Needle through the post. Unknown to us, the Post Office was on strike and after a month of being missing in action, the parcel finally arrived with the poor little Eve’s Needle definitely looking worse for the wear. I immediately prepared a pot with some good soil, ample drainage and carefully transplanted her to her new home. Now, almost ..read more

  Close friends--Dune Aloe and Tradescantia. Actually, Tradescantia can be friends with ANYBODY or anything! - it has no compunction about climbing up or over on under or through anything, so be careful as to where you plant it. I always say, it actually needs a garden all to itself ..read more

"When you sweep the garden, you are sweeping your mind." A daily chore, sweeping the garden, as feeding my feathered friends leaves a big mess of left-over seeds and husks. But the Sansevieria (Mother-in-Law's Tongue) doesn't seem to mind all the husks and the Callisia repens is absolutely flourishing! And all the left-over seeds that blow into the garden germinate and come up all over, providing extra sustenance for the birds as they absolutely love all the fresh greenery! So unless you don't mind some "untidy" looking beds, better to feed your birds further away from your prized beds ..read more

  Tonight all my Spekbooms (Portulacaria afra) look spectacular after a few days of rain - they actually do much better with more water than less, but they are absolute die-hards and will just go into rest-mode during a severe drought. And just in case you wondered, these pics were really taken tonight. The iPhone 11 Pro actually has quite a spectacular camera. This pic was taken this morning through my bedroom blinds, if you look closely, you can see the raindrops on the leaves. Also known as elephant bush, porkbush and purslane tree, the ecological signific ..read more

Mother-in-Law’s Tongue or Sansevieria trifasciata is native to Asia and Africa. Snake plants (Sansevieria) have a number of health benefits. They filter indoor air, remove toxic pollutants, may help boost mental health, are easy to care for, are effective against allergies and may help enhance the “energy” of a space, according to feng shui, therefore they are ideal in the bedroom.  In the garden they thrive in full sun as well as partial shade and quickly spread through rizomes. They are also great in pots indoors or on the patio ..read more

  If you’re looking for a succulent that’s easy to care for and propagates readily, get hold of a Graptoveria fantome. By propagating leaves, you will never have to buy another one and will soon have enough plants to start a nursery!  They are truly drought-tolerant, love full sun and will even grow in water ..read more

  Good morning! My new little Sansevieria patch. You just gotta love Mother-in-Law’s Tongue! This is Sansevieria trifiscata, native to South Africa, drought-resistent, tolerates low light but this one also just loves the sunlight ..read more

We have finally moved into our new home and, of course, one of the first things I did was to visit the nearest garden centre. One of my latest acquisitions is Aloe aristata - Aristaloe is a genus of evergreen flowering perennial plant in the family Asphodelaceae, indigenous to Southern Africa. Its sole species is Aristaloe aristata, known as guinea-fowl aloe or lace aloe. This semi-hardy succulent (does not tolerate frost at all) forms dense rosettes of fleshy, triangular leaves. These offsets that can be removed from the mother plant. Allow a day or two so that the wounds on the plant ..read more