Heal the land, heal yourself

I really love plants …. I love being in nature and finding peace in natural spaces…Even though I live very close I realise I don’t think I’ve ever been here before. I think I’m going to come here a lot more to see some of the animals and explore the biodiversity…. iI’s nice to actually come out into nature and feel that you are helping to restore something  - when you restore the line of healing you restore the land, you also restore something in yourself and in our fragmented society.
      These were some of the reasons which participants gave for joining the Princess Vlei Mandela Day planting on 20 July. Community members of all ages gathered to help restore the wetland environment on the Northern shore of Princess Vlei, in celebration of Mandela Day on July 18. 
       Kamva Nose, a conservation intern with the PVF, welcomed the group of 20 volunteers: ’We want to give back to nature, I come every morning here and hear the birds chirping … for me it is peaceful, a spiritual connection with mother nature .. I hope that when you come here you feel the same connection … As humans, we have responsibility, we are the custodians own nature. So let’s take care of it .’

Waiting for the volunteers were 200 plants, including Chrysanthemoides incana (Bietou) Leucadendron floridum (proteas), Salvia aurea ((Bruin Salie) and  Leonotus leonurus (Wilde Dagga).
    While we were planting, three Retreat residents, Allasandro Thareeq Byron walked past with their two dogs, Fluffy and Max. They are regular visitors and often fish in the vlei. They joined in helping with the planting.
      The Forum’s restoration team created this second pond earlier this year, to bring back the biodiversity that once thrived at Princess Vlei. These seasonal ponds were filled in when the vlei was dredged to prevent flooding over Prince George Drive.  
    We cannot restore the vlei to its original depth, but we are bringing back the ponds.  This will see the return of endangered species such as the micro frog which used to live here but is currently only found at Kenilworth Racecourse Conservation Area. In the old days locals gathered waterblommetjies at these ponds and shallow feeders, such as flamingos and spoonbills, would have frequented the area. (See for more about the ponds).
       ‘In the light of recent statistics of fast disappearing wetlands in our country and globally, this work is so important,’ said Mea Lashbrooke, one of the volunteer planters and a founder member of Princess Vlei Forum. ‘It’s wonderful to see so many here today. I have overheard questions and conversations about Mandela, about saving the planet, about saving the vlei from a mall. We are all learning from one another. Wetland ecosystems are vital to every aspect of the health of the planet and daily life.’
      Kamva reported that the bird life has increased markedly since work on the pond started. While we were planting, we saw a grey heron, cormorants, cisticolas, weavers and robin chats. 

• The Forum would like to thank all the volunteers, as well as the National Lotteries Commission and the Hans Hoheisen Charitable Trust, managed by Nedbank Private Wealth, for supporting our restoration project. Plants were donated by the Kirstenbosch branch of the Botanical Society of South Africa. We look forward to the flourishing life this pond will bring.