Feel-good gardening: Do it your way

Gardening should, like any other hobby, never be a shlep nor become a burden to anybody, unless you are totally not the gardening type, then you may be excused. Horticulture, or simply gardening, is quite a science on its own but no-one needs to be afraid of garden design.



Landscaping around homes has become a rather trendy industry, especially in big cities, copying every new garden design, style or new plant hybrid introduced to readers through numerous gardening and home décor magazines. I never was a person to submit to group pressure, always tending to do my own thing. I personally think that although there are fashions and trends, one should be able to express your personality and personal likings, in your own unique style and design. We often tend to follow trends, but do they always satisfy our personal choice or style? Does it really make us happy to copy what numerous other people see as trends or the latest fashion?



No… be like Frank Sinatra and do it your way. Still, life has its compromises: I would love having a wild English country garden, no order, no form, no line, all just informal but satisfying chaos. I love flowers everywhere, any colour, any size, no rules, no limits. However, I might end up lonely without my wife as she prefers way more order with shrubs and trees… so we have had to find the happy medium.



I have noticed numerous times when visiting people in the Namibian countryside that they have their little oasis where only their laws and regulations apply, and yet every time I notice their pleasure and joy far, far away from modern gardening and landscaping design trends and fashions. They do it their way.



Especially in our arid country where gardening is already a big challenge, I always tell my audiences that gardening in Namibia is not for sissies. In our struggle to have a decent garden, there is actually very little room for what the media would suggest the latest gardening trends and fashion should be. So, go with your gut, make sure to steal with your eyes that which is growing best in your area, experiment with new plants, try them out. Following your heart will certainly in the end give you the most pleasure.



As long as it makes you feel good…

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Pupkewitz Megabuild:
Eugene le Roux
Horticulturist
Cell: 081 124 6965