LANDSCAPING SALI Awards 2016
“ Largely , the plants between the buildings are positioned to form a thick forest . I have looked at hundreds of forests and even in old forests the plants are tightly packed together . These plantings at Steyn City are orchestrated for neatness and the trees chosen for their compact growth habits because , although the development is on the Gauteng Highveld , Steyn wanted some fundamentals of Eurocentricity . He wanted the soft-landscaping to be as tidy as possible ,” Watson explained in reference to his tree and shrub selection .
Watson ’ s choice of trees avoided those which have a disorderly appearance and are difficult to keep in shape , like many ‘ bushveld ’ trees and shrubs . “ Myrsine africana ( Cape Myrtle ), for example , is an inherently tidy plant with dense foliage which grows naturally on the edge of bush clusters or the fringes of forests in the Sandton area , itself , and further afield . We have also grown almost 300 000 each of the locally indigenous Celtis africana ( White Stinkwood ), Olea europaea subsp africana ( Wild Olive ) and local Combretum ( Bushwillow ) species , all of which have the classical European appearance . Another local small tree with a neat shape is Diospyros lycioides ( Bluebush ) which bears attractive orange to dark red fruit when ripe and is favoured by fruit-eating birds such as Bulbuls .
“ Trees such as Dombeya rotundifolia ( Wild Pear ) of which about 40 000 have been grown in the nursey are known for their flowering prior to leaf-bearing and when the trees bloom , more-or-less simultaneously , they will make a splendid showing . We planted the ‘ forests ’ very tightly , shorter in front and taller near the buildings . Trees adjacent to big buildings are large and those