Joburg winters are harsh. Temperatures often drop below freezing at night but our houses aren’t insulated, windows don’t close, and central heating doesn’t exist. The air is punishingly dry. Our weather is close to perfect for ten months a year, but the other two months are cold and we hate it. There are a few upsides to Joburg winters, though: bright blue skies, warm sun in the afternoon, and – best of all – blooming aloes.
JFF Rooftop Farm: A Plant Nursery in the Sky
I recently moved to a new house, and for the first time in nearly half a century of life I’ve become interested in plants. Actually that’s an understatement: I’ve become obsessed with plants. Most of my plants have names. I spend lots of time googling their care and gazing at them, admiring how they’ve grown and lightly touching their soils to determine if the need to be watered.
Read More
Lockdown Journal: Day 26 (Spiral)
If you’re new to this blog series and don’t know what’s happening with South Africa’s 21-day (now 35-day) lockdown, my first post has all the details. Or read all my lockdown posts.
Read More
"Renee's Little Killers" at Jozi Carnivores
After I published my recent blog post about Bonsai Magic, a lady named Renee emailed and asked if I’d like to visit her nursery in Houghton. The nursery is called Jozi Carnivores.
Read More
The Magical Bonsai Trees of Randfontein
A couple of months ago my friend Ang went to a bonsai tree nursery outside of Joburg. The nursery has thousands of bonsai trees and it’s called Bonsai Magic. Naturally, I saw Ang’s Instagram post and went to Bonsai Magic myself about three days later.