For the first time in 76 years, the Friends of the Arderne Gardens (Fotag) welcomed a mayor of Cape Town at the arboretum and public park located in the heart of Claremont.
On Wednesday 22 December last year, Mayor Geordin Hill-Lewis, along with Ward councillors Mikhail Manuel, Emile Langenhoven, Katherine Christie and Alexander Lansdowne visited the Arderne Gardens for a ceremonial tree planting.
According to Fotag, this was the first visit by a mayor of Cape Town to the garden since Mayor Abe Bloomberg welcomed General Smuts back from the war in December 1945.
“A Pepper-bark tree (Warburgia salutaris), the tree of the year 2021, was planted by the mayor and the councillors. Warburgia was chosen as it is a success story, having been brought back from the brink of extinction through conservation efforts and interestingly, when Nelson Mandela visited Kirstenbosch for the first time in 1996, he planted a Pepper-bark tree, then also the tree of the year. It meant to symbolise his healing to the nation,” shared the Fotag in a press release.
While there, Hill-Lewis also had the opportunity to see the work the Fotag have undertaken in their eight-year Renaissance project of the park, returning a once neglected district park to a beautiful and safe space for the community.
“The work that the Friends of the Arderne Gardens do is exemplary and should encourage all of us to get involved. The City of Cape Town has limited resources and capacity and so it is through such partnerships with active citizens that we will be able to do more and cultivate pride in our city,” said Hill-Lewis.
Fotag hosts a monthly tour of the Arderne Gardens on the first Saturday of each month starting at 10:00. A donation of R50 is welcomed and includes a brochure on the garden.
