Tabla de contenidos para Autumn 2020 en go! Platteland

As Platteland’s home-made kombucha was happily fermenting away in Consol jars in the pantry for our fermentation story on page 74, the founders of Happy Culture Kombucha, Mark Jones and Manon Colmant, sent us samples of their two new products, Cherry CBD and Zesty Energy. With the former, which is enriched with CBD oil (cannabidiol) derived from Cannabis sativa, they join the growing wave of businesses using this active compound in the cannabis plant to lend “healing properties” to various products. The Zesty Energy variety has a kick of guarana and ginseng that promises to put a new spring in your step (and your mind). Happy Culture Kombucha’s fermented organic green tea full of bubbles is available in 340 ml (R25–R30) and 850 ml (R55–R62) recyclable PET bottles. It contains…

Garden Succulents by Gideon F Smith and Ben-Erik van Wyk In a country like South Africa where drought is reaching disastrous proportions in some areas, it makes sense to plant succulents that are able to store water and survive such hard times. Moreover, succulents are easy to grow and are available in a wide variety of shapes, sizes and colours. Written with gardeners and horticulturists in mind, this guide contains descriptions of more than 400 of the best-known garden succulents, and information about the most important succulent families to help you identify plants fast. More than 600 full-colour photos complete the offering. Platteland compiled an article about this book – read it on page 92. R395 Briza 012 329 3896 briza.co.za WIN 1: Succulents Cook and Enjoy for Kids by…

It’s not at all difficult to come up with a title for the rather unusual fairy tale that is unfolding at Nicola Vernon’s Greyton Farm Animal Sanctuary: The Showgirl and the Gentle Sow. Or perhaps The Bond Girl and the Injured Calf. Or something along the lines of The Good Fairy and the Pigs. The basic elements of this fairy tale are all there: the adventurous British girl who grew up in Singapore and later worked in Paris as a dancer and as an extra in the Bond movie Moonraker; the eccentric businessman who owns a castle in the English countryside where he cares for rescued farm animals… There is a love story, a death, the need to honour someone’s memory. And then, finally, a very happy ending for the…

Igrew up in the Platteland, in Rustenburg in North West, and always kept myself occupied playing in the garden. My parents and grandparents were keen vegetable gardeners and I vividly remember pulling up bright, juicy, tasty orange carrots from my Oupa’s veggie garden in Bronkhorstspruit. My mom kept chickens in our garden, and many memories come to mind of roosters chasing me as a little girl. Today, I am an accountant and tax practitioner with a master’s degree in taxation. I have been consulting in accounting, tax and business services for the past 24 years alongside my life and business partner, Kobus. Our practice is at our home in Waterkloof, Pretoria. Our children left the nest a few years ago, and we now live happily with our two dogs, Mika…

The Platteland doesn’t have the kind of attractions that keep born urbanites happy. Our neighbour had married a city girl – they’d met as students at university and fallen in love. And, since love bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things, she was determined to adapt to life on the Platteland. All was indeed fine… until their second child entered school. That’s when she got restless and remembered she’d once dreamt of a singing career. Lucretia is our town’s music teacher. Thirty years ago she was an inkommer herself, but after her husband’s untimely death she had to earn a living, so she started to teach piano, the guitar and singing to children, mainly. The neighbour’s wife became one of Lucretia’s few adult students. ONE…

WE’D LOVE TO HEAR FROM YOU! Write to us and tell us about your move to the Platteland, the characters in your town, the things you love, the things that bug you… Send an email to helloplatteland@gmail.com or post your letter to Platteland Letters, PO Box 526, Moorreesburg 7310. We give preference to letters of fewer than 300 words. Remember to include your name and surname and, very importantly, the town where you live. Platteland reserves the right to edit and shorten letters. Winning letter It’s the people who make a dorp Since Platteland came into being, I have bought every single issue and they are all – from #1 tot #24 (now #25) – stacked neatly on my bookshelf. With regard to the letter “Why these negative things?” in…

The Cape Camino pilgrimage route, divided into four sections that will eventually cover about 850 km, saw the light in 2015, when the fourth section, the circular route of 160 km in the Cape Peninsula, was launched. Now, the very first group of pilgrims completed the first and second sections totalling 222 km, known as the Limietberg and Berg River sections, respectively, and Platteland caught up with them over lunch at Die Rooi Granaat in Aurora. Have a look at the website to find out how you can walk the trail on specific dates in a group or on your own. Watch a short YouTube video about the launch of Section 1 and 2 that was filmed by a pilgrim, Sandra Korse of the Netherlands: type in “Cape Camino launch…

Sugar-free cordial in flavours Pumpkin Spice, Ginger, Glühwein and Orange Blossom (750 ml) R130 each Gudgu (Goedheid Uit Die Grond Uit) gudgu.co.za 076 530 6050 Portable thermal-insulated stainlesssteel triple-layer lunch box R180 Takealot takealot.com Gemma Orkin ceramic bowls R450 each Poetry poetrystores.co.za Double-pack tea towels (40 cm x 70 cm) R60 Checkers checkers.co.za 0800 01 07 09 Woven hyacinth planter with wooden legs (plant excluded) R350 Woolworths woolworths.co.za 0860 022 002 Gemmerkat Craft Ginger Beer (1? & 500 ml) about R19 and R13 each OK Foods okfoods.co.za Spar spar.co.za PVC-free single-deck cool bag R120 Woolworths woolworths.co.za 0860 022 002 Velskoene R799 per pair Fish and More Fish and More 028 435 7096 In-Step jbayboots.com Cast-iron tea pot with bamboo handle and two cups R699 for the set Poetry poetrystores.co.za Sorbet…

Johann has maize, soya and cattle on his farm, Paardefontein – but he and his neighbour, Nico Bierman, often joke that here in Val they farm with “grain and women”. Johann and his wife, Elisca, have four children under the age of five – Elizé (4), Wilrich (3), Rianke (2) and Mihannri (almost 1) – yet they still have the energy and courage to start a new business. “Soya is one of the most valuable sources of protein, and I’m always looking for something that adds value to our farming venture. In November 2017, I suddenly had an idea at 02:00 one morning. I woke Elisca to share it with her – she was not at all happy with me! I dreamt of a FutureLife kind of drink – a…

When and how did you come up with the idea for your business, Woestynkind (Desert Child)? In August 2015 we took our annual seaside holiday at Leentjiesklip in Langebaan. One day, I decided to place a piece of Oasis foam in a wooden crate and arranged some desert roses in it – in memory of my father, who had passed away in 2013. I was surprised at how long the succulents lasted in the Oasis. During our two-week holiday, my sisters who were there also bought wooden crates and planted succulents in them. After the holiday I would arrange succulents in a crate occasionally, either for my home or as a gift. People noticed them on Facebook and I started getting orders for my succulent crates. Woestynkind really took off…

About 4% of the flowering plants of the world – an estimated 12 500 species – are succulents that use their fleshy leaves, stems and/or roots as an adaptive strategy to overcome brief or prolonged periods of drought. More than a third of these plants – well over 4 500 species – come from Southern Africa, where it forms about 25% of its flora. This succulent wealth of all shapes, sizes and descriptions is distributed over more than 80 different families and nearly 700 genera, but with a significant concentration in about 15 families. Other regions with high concentrations of succulents include parts of South America, Mexico and the southern US in the New World, and the Canary Islands and Mediterranean Europe in the Old World. But what is a…

Fresh beetroot sometimes tastes as if you’re biting into clean, sweet earth. This earthiness, the sugar content (higher than that of carrots and mielies) and the concentrated jewel-like colour are both a joy and its undoing. Or, as Nigel Slater puts it in his cookbook Tender: Volume 1: “It is sod’s law that beetroot should marry so happily with the virginal white of goat’s cheeses, mascarpone and thick puddles of crème fraîche, none of whose looks are improved by a pink stain curdling the outer edge. I make a habit of mixing the scarlet roots with dairy ingredients or mayonnaise only at the very last minute, often passing a bowl of sour cream and chopped dill around for everyone to anoint their own salad at the table.” Believe it or…

The Korean kimchi recipe on page 79 was made in what must be the most flamboyant fermentation pot in the country. This functional sculpture is the handiwork of Leon Potgieter, formerly from Pretoria (and Cape Town). Under the name Leon Potterbakker, he also makes beautiful vases, fruit bowls, plates, bowls and oil jars. We particularly love his large slow-cooking clay pots, which you can use on the stovetop and in the oven. Leon makes all these products to order – have a look on his website and place your order online. There is more good news for Swartlanders and those living in the Western Cape: Leon and his partner, Izak Ferreira, last year swapped their flat in the Mother City for Koringberg, where Leon now offers pottery classes for anyone…

WESTERN CAPE SpiritFest, Swellendam 5-8 MARCH Yoga, dance, meditation and community are the order of the day at this festival of the spirit in the natural beauty of the Overberg. Where? Somerset Gift, Sparrebosch Road Hours From 14:00 on the Thursday Cost Several options for day or weekend visitors, with or without accommodation, at webtickets.co.za Contact spiritfest.co.za WESTERN CAPE Ambeloui Harvest Festival, Hout Bay 14 MARCH In Platteland #22 (last year’s Autumn issue) we featured the Christodoulou family of Hout Bay and the excellent MCC they make. Now it’s time once again for their annual harvest festival, where you can buy sparkling wine by the glass (or bottle or case), delicious Greek souvlaki grilled over the coals, and all sorts of Greek snacks – cooked or frozen. Where? Ambeloui Wine…

Growth is something that fascinates her, says Annatjie Truter, a teacher in Frankfort in the Free State – whether it’s a plant, an animal or a human being. Annatjie says the man who helps her in her garden, Petrus Ngozo, has worked for her two days a week for the past 13 years. They work side by side, taking cuttings and planting, and he has a natural affinity for gardening. “I have an informal garden with a few straight lines, fences and herbaceous borders for structure. The beds are a higgledy-piggledy mix of plants – different lavenders, Inca lilies, arum lilies, roses, herbs, agapanthus, irises, flax, barberry, day lilies, gauras and redhot pokers. And I love succulents, desert roses and spekboom in particular.” For Petrus, gardening with Annatjie isn’t just…

The eight main families account for more than 80% of succulents, so the ability to recognise these families is a useful first step to identifying species. The reader is encouraged to focus on the critical characteristic of each of the main families. The last two groups – unusual stem succulents and unusual leaf succulents – were created artificially to give wider coverage to plant families that include only one or two succulent members. 1 Sisal family or century plant family (Agavaceae)* Typical characteristics Leaf succulents; aloe-like plants; fibrous, persistent leaves; flowers usually white or greenish. * Including Dracaenaceae (dragon tree family) and Nolinaceae (beargrass family) 2 Carrion flower family (Apocynaceae) Typical characteristics Stem succulents (often lacking leaves); often with milky sap; waxy flowers (often with a strong smell); flowers often…

There’s a good reason virtually every cookbook contains at least one beetroot recipe: both the raw and cooked versions of this autumn vegetable are packed with flavour, aroma and nutrients, and it can be kept in the fridge for up to three months and preserved in many ways to enjoy later. Whenever possible, choose smaller beetroots that are similar in size and do not discard the leaves – they can be used as a substitute for salad leaves and spinach. Also leave part of the stalk and root attached when you boil or roast beetroot, as this helps to prevent it from “bleeding”. The most popular cooking methods for beetroot are boiling and oven-roasting. Keep in mind it’s easier to remove the skins while the beetroots are still warm. Juicing…