Kirstenbosch & pincushion proteas

Cecil John Rhodes was a colossus of a man who shaped southern Africa and left an indelible footprint.
Capetonians are reminded of this daily by the glowering Cape granite monument, Rhodes Memorial designed by Sir Herbert Baker, on the southern slopes of Table Mountain.

But a century ago yesterday, perhaps a more fitting memorial to Rhodes was founded from humble beginnings, further along the mountain flanks: the Kirstenbosch National Botanical Gardens.|
Originally inhabited by Stone Age man – hand axes and stone implements have been found in the Dell – the forests and fynbos of pre-settlement Kirstenbosch gave shelter and sustenance to Khoikhoi people, earlier inhabitants and herders.

The history of Kirstenboch is the history of Cape Town – a history of pre-colonial settlement, colonial dispossession and conquest as Dutch settlers and the Khoikhoi clashed over grazing routes. It was the first Dutch East India commander at the Cape Jan van Riebeeck, who in 1660 ordered the planting of a hedge of wild almond trees and brambles to separate the settlers from the indigenous people – part of which still survives.

Rhodes bought the land on which Kirstenbsoch stands in 1895 and bequeathed it to the government after his death in 1902. It was perhaps his greatest gift to people of Cape Town and South Africa, alongside the University of Cape Town and his former residence, Groot Schuur.

From humble beginnings as a derelict farm overrun with feral pigs, many people, like Harold Pearson who surveyed it in 1913, the South African National Biodiversity Institute and the Botanical Society of South Africa have contributed to making Kirstenbosch what it is today.

It is fitting that the gardens are not only a natural refuge and haven for the Cape Floral Kingdom’s fauna and flora, but also a peaceful and joyful gathering place for descendants of all those diverse South Africans – from Stone Age man to Khoikhoi herders and settler colonialists – who have helped shape its history.

For more about Kirstenbosch and exhibits at the Chelsea Flower Show  

Acknowledgment:  The Cape Times, Wed July 3 2013