Gardens to visit in South Africa

Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden was one of the key reasons I wanted to visit Cape Town. I’d long heard of the famous gardens, and their importance to horticulture worldwide, so the chance to explore them for real was a dream come true. There’s so much to do and see in Cape Town and, with only a few days to fit it all in, my wife and I had to carve out dedicated time to visit Kirstenbosch, but we’re so pleased we did.

The landscape surrounding the garden was the first thing that grabbed our attention – dominated by the spectacular backdrop of Table Mountain, the gardens are set against the mountain slopes. The landscape alone is breathtakingly beautiful, and it’s worth visiting the gardens just to experience Mother Nature at her best. But of course, the gardens are all about plants and there’s so much to see. From collections of proteas and other South African natives, to gardens dedicated to fragrance, water conservation and more, the variety is incredible. It’s also fascinating to see so many of the plants we grow in our own gardens thriving in their natural habitat – I hadn’t realised how many of the things we grow in the UK originate from South Africa.

While cultivated plant collections are at the heart of all Kirstenbosch does, like many botanic gardens it offers much more. The gardens are vast, covering around 1,300 acres, and in parts they feel much more like a national park or nature reserve. If you can dedicate some time to exploring, there are several hiking trails which take you off the main footpaths – they range from 15 minutes to three hours to complete, and really are worth it. There’s also a mountain biking route if you’re feeling adventurous. We enjoyed one of the longer trails, which took us into