Residents at the Ons Tuiste Retirement Home in Humansdorp have established a low water garden while maintaining and beautifying it, to ensure that they have an area to relax in and enjoy the beauty of nature.
Manager of Ons Tuiste, Martie Zeelie, said the garden was first constructed by the family members of the Ons Tuiste Trust 12 years ago.
The maintenance of the garden was then taken over by the residents of the home three years ago. Seven of the residents have continued to maintain the garden and have placed their own artistic stamp on the area.
“The residents take so much joy in working in the garden because they are given free range to reconstruct it as they please,” said Zeelie.
According to Zeelie, resident Miemie Kok constantly fiddled with the garden to ensure it was well taken care of, by collecting water, which she used to maintain the plant growth.
To help Kok easily collect water for the garden, her family recently donated a water tank and pump to the home, which has further ignited her love for gardening. Zeelie said residents often go for walks and sit in the garden to enjoy the special ambiance and beauty thereof.
“The residents walk in the garden for exercise and enjoy feeding and watching birds. Some residents even knit and read in the garden. The lapa in the centre of the garden is also an area where they enjoy spending their time overlooking the garden,” said Zeelie. “The growing flowers cheer up lives within the home and the garden creates a welcoming atmosphere for visitors.”
She said small ornaments placed in the garden were personal pieces from many of the residents living in the home.
“With the placement of ornaments in the garden the residents leave a piece of themselves in the garden which makes them feel part of the home,” said Zeelie.
To further allow more residents to soak up the sun and enjoy the garden, the home needs more garden furniture, which they hope to acquire through donations.
One of the seven residents who have continued to take care of the garden, Ina Vermeulen, said she enjoyed the process of beautifying the garden.
Vermeulen, who has been staying at the home for nine years, said, due to the drought, it was important for them to create a garden which did not need much water.
“The section of the garden which we were involved with was very disorganised. We wanted to create a garden which was easy to maintain, especially for the residents who constantly worked in the garden,” said Vermeulen.
Christa Ferreira, who has also been staying at the home for the last nine years, said as part of their upkeep of the garden they placed stones and bird ornaments in the area.
“We plan to continue maintaining the garden and ensure that residents can sit and enjoy its beauty,” said Ferreira.
In addition to the garden, the home has also recently embarked on another special project to allow family and friends to visit the residents while ensuring everyone adheres to the COVID-19 regulations of social distancing.
With the help of donations from staff, family members and the residents, the home was able to create a sunroom for visitors to visit members of the home.
“Due to the COVID-19 regulations, families were not allowed to have physical contact with the residents.
“We initially arranged for a security gate, covered with plastic, for residents and visitors to communicate safely, because we did not have a suitable area for our visitors,” said Zeelie.
Unfortunately, she said many residents were deaf and had poor eyesight which made communicating with their families through the plastic covered gate very difficult.
The development of the sunroom, with two entrances, was meant to create a safe space for family members to visit the residents, while they sat at a table which provided the necessary social distancing needed for everyone to be safe.
