GEORGE NEWS - Driving round the traffic circle at the top of York Street, one cannot miss the circle's new look.
The change is courtesy of the Garden Route Botanical Garden that has established a water-wise, indigenous garden there to bring to the forefront the beauty of water-wise indigenous plants. Bringing indigenous plant diversity into our urban spaces not only acts as an educational display, it also provides sustenance to a host of insects and birds that are adapted to feed specifically from indigenous plant species.
The botanical garden's manager, Finn Rautenbach, is very happy that they could do the project. "The planting of the York Circle was an exciting process.
"The creative process behind the planting was of the most challenging, yet the most fun that I have been involved in. Some species planted in the garden include pincushions and tubular ericas, both of which provide important feeding grounds for indigenous birds species."
Besides the water-wise plant species used in the garden, mulch was used to ensure that not a drop of water will be wasted in this garden.
The wood chip reduces evaporation of water from the soil as well as the loss of nutrients from the soil into the atmosphere.
Preparations for the new landscaping of the York Street traffic circle.
Rautenbach says the rock used was specifically chosen to introduce visitors to the dominant rock type found in our region, Table Mountain Sandstone. Not only is this rock aesthetically pleasing, it actually forms the major constituent of our mountain ranges. This in turn affects the composition of the soil that allows for the growth of the beautiful flora found in our precious part of Eden.
The new landscaping of the York Street circle was done by the Garden Route Botanical Garden. Currently the mulch is the most noticeable part, but given a few months garden should come into its own. The rock used in the garden is the aesthetically pleasing Table Mountain Sandstone, the predominant rock type in our region.
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