Company’s Garden Trees

Landscape architect, Clare Burgess’ highly enjoyable and informative walk of Cape Town’s central park, is back by popular demand.

The variety of trees is astounding. Wiki says there are 3 000 plants species in the Garden. Two are from the time of the dinosaurs – some cycads existed in the Mesozoic Era (251.9 million to 66 million years ago). Ginkgo has been planted since ancient times in Chinese and Japanese temple gardens.

Clare worked at the City for nine years and designed some of the areas in the Garden. She is an active local champion of the value of trees, especially in the urban environment, the urban forest as she calls it. She is the co-founder and chair of TreeKeepers Cape Town.

Having been a lecturer at both the University of Cape Town and Cape Peninsula University of Technology, Clare is still asked to bring students to the Garden for special trips.

The Garden was created as a farm, maintained by enslaved labour in the 17th century. Slowly over the years, the farm got smaller as Cape Town got bigger. It now has major South African institutions on all sides. It is used by many Capetonians to get to and from work or school. We will see families enjoying the park, perhaps too some brides and grooms for their wedding pictures.

Cost per person: R400; free for full time landscape students and long term unemployed.

To book: kate@cultureconnectsa.com WhatsApp +27 72 377 8014

Start and finish at Coffee At The Vine and Heritage Shop

17 Queen Victoria St

Company’s Garden (near the Company’s Garden Restaurant)

Cape Town City Centre, Cape Town, 8000

Saturday 12 October 2024, 10am to 12h30 (note 30 minutes more than the usual Culture Connect open tour; do slip away early)

Clare and I will be delighted if you could join us for lunch at the Coffee At The Vine.

Let me know if you would like this as a private tour; ditto Clare’s walking tour at Arderne/Claremont Gardens and Green Point’s Urban Park. Her knowledge, story telling and passion are phenomenal.