{"id":50546,"date":"2026-10-26T13:23:49","date_gmt":"2026-10-26T11:23:49","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/?p=50546"},"modified":"2026-10-19T13:28:05","modified_gmt":"2026-10-19T11:28:05","slug":"rewilding-your-garden","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/blog\/2026\/10\/26\/rewilding-your-garden\/","title":{"rendered":"Rewilding Your Garden"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>Jenny Dean shares how indigenous planting can transform ordinary gardens into beautiful sanctuaries that provide food, shelter and habitat for birds, butterflies, insects and other wildlife.<\/p>\n<p>In a world that seems to move faster every year, a garden can offer something increasingly precious: a place to slow down, breathe, reconnect with nature and step away from the noise of everyday life. For indigenous garden mentor, landscaper and nursery owner Jenny Dean, this is exactly what a garden should be.<\/p>\n<p>With more than 30 years of experience gardening with South Africa\u2019s indigenous plants, Jenny has built her work around the simple but powerful idea that our gardens can be beautiful spaces for people while also becoming vital habitats for the creatures that share our environment.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cLife is so fast and busy for all of us,\u201d says Jenny. \u201cOur gardens can be a haven, a retreat from the world, a place where we can come back to peace.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>But Jenny\u2019s vision extends beyond creating a peaceful outdoor space. As development continues to reduce natural habitat, gardens can play an important role in providing food and shelter for birds, insects, bees and butterflies.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_50548\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-50548\" style=\"width: 400px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-50548\" src=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-400x267.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"400\" height=\"267\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-400x267.jpg 400w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-1024x684.jpg 1024w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-768x513.jpg 768w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-1536x1027.jpg 1536w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-628x420.jpg 628w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-696x465.jpg 696w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073-1068x714.jpg 1068w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04073.jpg 1616w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 400px) 100vw, 400px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-50548\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo: Ella Hartmann<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\u201cWe can make a difference in our gardens by planting local South African plants and replacing, in a small way, some of our lost habitat.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>One of the joys of gardening for wildlife is discovering that every plant can have a role.<\/p>\n<p>Take the indigenous tree fuchsia (<em>Halleria lucida<\/em>). Its striking red flowers are rich in nectar and can attract large numbers of nectar-loving birds. Later, the tree produces small, green, marble-like fruits that provide food for fruit-eating birds.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cPlant one near your patio so you can enjoy the spectacle,\u201d suggests Jenny.<\/p>\n<p>Another of Jenny\u2019s favourites is the cross-berry (<em>Grewia occidentalis<\/em>), a graceful, rambling shrub that can support an impressive range of wildlife. It serves as a larval host for numerous moths and butterflies, meaning its leaves provide food for caterpillars.<\/p>\n<p>And rather than seeing those caterpillars as something to eradicate, Jenny encourages gardeners to celebrate them.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cCaterpillars attract the cuckoos and you will so enjoy the bright flashing colours of these lovely birds.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>The cross-berry also produces small fruits enjoyed by birds such as bulbuls and mousebirds. What might look like a single shrub is, in reality, supporting an entire chain of life.<\/p>\n<p>For Jenny, this is at the heart of wildlife-friendly gardening: looking beyond what a plant contributes visually and considering the many creatures that depend on it.<\/p>\n<p>For many gardeners, one of the biggest changes is learning to see insects differently.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cInsects are protein and form a major part of a bird\u2019s diet,\u201d Jenny explains. \u201cThrow the insecticides away. There is no need for them when you have a balanced garden.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Instead, she recommends creating healthy soil through regular composting and keeping the soil covered with mulch.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cNever have bare soil,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>Mulching helps reduce water evaporation, protects the soil from wind and can help suppress weeds, while contributing organic matter as it breaks down. Water is another simple way to make a garden more inviting.<\/p>\n<p>You don&#8217;t need an elaborate water feature. Jenny recommends a simple birdbath placed at ground level, which can be used by ground-feeding birds such as robin-chats and thrushes. A second birdbath, raised and tucked beneath a shrub or tree, can provide a safe and welcome drinking and bathing spot for other birds.<\/p>\n<p>One misconception Jenny is keen to challenge is that an indigenous garden has to look dry, sparse or dominated by rocks and aloes. It doesn&#8217;t.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou can have an English country look, pretty and billowing with flowers, purely with local plants,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n<p>With the incredible diversity of South African flora, there is no reason an indigenous garden can&#8217;t be abundant, colourful and romantic, with flowers and interest throughout the seasons.<\/p>\n<p>There is also a practical benefit. Indigenous plants are adapted to local conditions, which means many are well suited to South Africa\u2019s climate and can be less demanding of water once established.<\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_50552\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-50552\" style=\"width: 267px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"wp-image-50552 size-medium\" src=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-267x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"267\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-267x400.jpg 267w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-684x1024.jpg 684w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-768x1149.jpg 768w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-1027x1536.jpg 1027w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-281x420.jpg 281w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-696x1041.jpg 696w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-1068x1598.jpg 1068w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04110-rotated.jpg 1080w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 267px) 100vw, 267px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-50552\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo: Ella Hartmann<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>Jenny&#8217;s advice is simple: choose plants according to the conditions they naturally prefer, water them well while they establish themselves, and then allow them to settle into their environment.<\/p>\n<p>As water becomes an increasingly precious resource, thoughtful plant selection is one of the most effective ways a gardener can create a beautiful outdoor space without creating unnecessary demands on water.<\/p>\n<p>If your goal is to attract birds and butterflies throughout the year, Jenny recommends thinking about the garden as an ecosystem rather than simply filling beds with plants you happen to love.<\/p>\n<p>Plant a diverse combination of trees, shrubs and groundcovers rather than creating large, sweeping beds of a single species, because wildlife needs food and shelter at different times of the year.<\/p>\n<p>\u201cYou don\u2019t want a \u2018feast or famine\u2019 situation, where one month you have aloes for sunbirds and then nothing for the rest of the year,\u201d Jenny explains.<\/p>\n<p>A varied planting scheme creates a continuous supply of food, shelter and habitat, while also giving the garden greater visual interest throughout the seasons.<\/p>\n<p>And if you&#8217;re unsure where to begin, Jenny believes that seeking advice from someone with a deep knowledge of indigenous plants can make all the difference. There is an extraordinary range of indigenous plants available today, as well as an increasing number of indigenous open gardens offering inspiration.<\/p>\n<p>Perhaps the most compelling thing about Jenny\u2019s approach is that wildlife-friendly gardening doesn&#8217;t require us to sacrifice beauty. Quite the opposite.<\/p>\n<p>A garden filled with indigenous plants can be lush, colourful and inviting. It can become a place where birds arrive at the patio, butterflies move between flowers and the sounds of wildlife become part of everyday life.<\/p>\n<p>And it can become a sanctuary not only for us, but for the creatures that increasingly need somewhere to live and feed.<\/p>\n<p>Jenny shares her knowledge through her landscaping work, garden mentoring and her specialist indigenous plant nursery in Summerveld. Her \u201cnursery-in-a-garden\u201d is open to the public on Fridays and Saturdays, offering gardeners the opportunity to explore the plants, enjoy the surrounding views and birds and get advice tailored to their own gardens.<\/p>\n<p>Her philosophy is a hopeful one. \u201cWe don&#8217;t need to restore an entire landscape to make a difference. Sometimes, we can start with a tree, a shrub, a patch of groundcover, a birdbath or a little less insecticide. A garden planted with thought and intention can become more than a beautiful space. It can become a small but meaningful piece of habitat, alive with birds, insects, butterflies and the countless other creatures that make our natural world so wonderfully rich.\u201d<\/p>\n<p>And perhaps, in creating that little sanctuary for them, we create one for ourselves too.<\/p>\n<p><em>Details:<\/em> <em>You can email Jenny at <\/em><a href=\"mailto:jenny@jennydeanwildflowers.co.za\"><em>jenny@jennydeanwildflowers.co.za<\/em><\/a><em> or follow her on Instagram: @jennydeanlandscaping or Facebook: Jenny Dean Wildflowers<\/em><\/p>\n<figure id=\"attachment_50549\" aria-describedby=\"caption-attachment-50549\" style=\"width: 267px\" class=\"wp-caption aligncenter\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"size-medium wp-image-50549\" src=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04080-267x400.jpg\" alt=\"\" width=\"267\" height=\"400\" srcset=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04080-267x400.jpg 267w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04080-685x1024.jpg 685w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04080-281x420.jpg 281w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04080-696x1041.jpg 696w, https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04080.jpg 722w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 267px) 100vw, 267px\" \/><figcaption id=\"caption-attachment-50549\" class=\"wp-caption-text\">Photo: Ella Hartmann<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<h2>JENNY\u2019S GARDEN WISDOM<\/h2>\n<h3>Look at your garden as an ecosystem<\/h3>\n<p>Rather than choosing plants individually, think about how they work together. A successful wildlife garden offers different forms of food, shelter and habitat, helping support a greater variety of life.<\/p>\n<h3>Consider what happens after flowering<\/h3>\n<p>A plant&#8217;s contribution doesn&#8217;t necessarily end when its flowers fade. Jenny&#8217;s examples show how leaves can become food for caterpillars and fruits can provide nourishment for birds.<\/p>\n<h3>Give wildlife somewhere to gather<\/h3>\n<p>You don&#8217;t need a huge garden or elaborate landscaping to create a wildlife-friendly space. A strategically placed tree, shrub, groundcover or birdbath can become a small but valuable piece of habitat.<\/p>\n<h3>Allow the garden to evolve<\/h3>\n<p>A balanced garden is not something that has to be perfected overnight. Choose plants suited to your conditions, give them the care they need while establishing and allow the garden to develop over time.<\/p>\n<h3>Look for inspiration before you dig<\/h3>\n<p>If you&#8217;re unsure which indigenous plants will work in your garden, seek advice from someone with specialist knowledge. Visiting indigenous open gardens can also help you see just how varied and beautiful a local planting palette can be.<\/p>\n<h3>Jenny\u2019s starting point<\/h3>\n<p><strong>Ask yourself three questions before choosing a plant:<\/strong> What conditions does it naturally prefer? What could it provide for wildlife? And will it contribute something at a different time of year from the plants already growing in your garden?<\/p>\n<p>This simple approach can help turn a collection of individual plants into a more connected, living garden.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Jenny Dean shares how indigenous planting can transform ordinary gardens into beautiful sanctuaries that provide food, shelter and habitat for birds, butterflies, insects and other wildlife. In a world that seems to move faster every year, a garden can offer something increasingly precious: a place to slow down, breathe, reconnect with nature and step away [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":24,"featured_media":50550,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[23,2797,20],"tags":[13300,13299,13301],"class_list":["post-50546","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-homes-and-decor-and-garden","category-homes-and-decor","category-personalities","tag-jenny-dean","tag-jenny-dean-wildflowers","tag-wildflowers"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v28.8 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Rewilding Your Garden - Get it Highway &amp; Berea<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/blog\/2026\/10\/26\/rewilding-your-garden\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Rewilding Your Garden - Get it Highway &amp; Berea\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Jenny Dean shares how indigenous planting can transform ordinary gardens into beautiful sanctuaries that provide food, shelter and habitat for birds, butterflies, insects and other wildlife. In a world that seems to move faster every year, a garden can offer something increasingly precious: a place to slow down, breathe, reconnect with nature and step away [&hellip;]\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/blog\/2026\/10\/26\/rewilding-your-garden\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"Get it Highway &amp; Berea\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/GetItDurban\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-10-26T11:23:49+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/getitmagazine.co.za\/highway-berea\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/23\/2026\/10\/DSC04086-1.jpg\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1616\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"1080\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/jpeg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Bronwyn Forbes-Hardinge | Journalist\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@GetItDurban\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@GetItDurban\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Bronwyn Forbes-Hardinge | Journalist\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"7 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/highway-berea\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/26\\\/rewilding-your-garden\\\/#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/highway-berea\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/26\\\/rewilding-your-garden\\\/\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Bronwyn Forbes-Hardinge | Journalist\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/highway-berea\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/80a219dd5ff8ce9351fdda5857461a08\"},\"headline\":\"Rewilding Your Garden\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-10-26T11:23:49+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/highway-berea\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/26\\\/rewilding-your-garden\\\/\"},\"wordCount\":1437,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/highway-berea\\\/blog\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/26\\\/rewilding-your-garden\\\/#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/getitmagazine.co.za\\\/highway-berea\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/sites\\\/23\\\/2026\\\/10\\\/DSC04086-1.jpg\",\"keywords\":[\"Jenny Dean\",\"Jenny Dean Wildflowers\",\"Wildflowers\"],\"articleSection\":[\"Home &amp; 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