A garden paradise of the grandest design

A stay at Bosjes working farm in the Western Cape brings one closer to heaven, says Brian Berkman.

- Brian Berkman.

Grand design is central to Bosjes, a working farm and upscale hospitality offering in the Breedekloof Valley, between the Western Cape towns of Worcester and Wolseley.

Bosjes is the shortened name of the area, Bosjesmans Valley.

Informed by a spiritual awakening and a commitment to upliftment, a family trust was established to own and manage the roll-out of the farm’s iconic chapel and other facilities. These include the recently upgraded Herehuis, where the original family lived, and which now has seven magnificent rooms and suites. There are also three restaurants.

But it is not the accommodation, albeit elegant and supremely comfortable, nor the delicious cuisine, but rather the gardens that speak subtle messages and are the loudest exclamations of beauty.

They were laid out by Square One Landscape Architects, which was recently acknowledged by the Institute for Landscape Architecture in South Africa by winning its President’s Award for monumental landscape architecture.

Combined with the built environment, the gardens create a hospitality offering that meets all the criteria for the day visitor and overnight guest alike, and engages all the senses and uplifts the community and land in doing so.

On entering Bosjes’s gates, visitors pass Botha’s Halte Primary School. This Department of Education school is one of the beneficiaries of the Bosjes Trust and is co-managed by the farm management and the local municipality.

The school’s design, which incorporates renewable energy and a sustainable food garden, has been so successful that the department plans to use it as a blueprint for future schools.