Steiltes community joins Our Mbombela
Residents of a Steiltes complex have turned an illegal dumping site into a indigenous garden under the Our Mbombela movement.
Beautifying the city in the spirit of the Our Mbombela movement, two community members, Ruval and Mart-Marie Gouws, put their heads together to turn an illegal dumping site into a stunning indigenous garden.
Speaking on behalf of the project, Ruval, a resident at the De Kruine Complex in Steiltes, said the area outside the complex had become a dumping ground for all sorts of litter and refuse.
“The dumping was a daily occurrence. I wanted to turn it around and potentially stop people from dropping their rubbish on the ground,” she said. She said she voiced her idea to other residents in the complex and soon everyone was working together to beautify the illegal dumping spot.
Ruval said she had moved from the Bahrain, Middle East back to the Lowveld and bought a house in the complex. “I saw people just dumping their litter on the sidewalk and it looked so bad. I wanted a creative solution,” she said.
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Ruval said she took to Pinterest for some ideas, and when they acquired the old VW Beetle, the rest was history. “I am also a lover of plants and so that is why we decided to fill the old Beetle with plants. I am absolutely amazed by the community’s positive reaction and all the help we received,” she said.
She thanked Lydia du Plooy for the plants she donated as well as Millennium Motors for sponsoring 90% of the plants in the garden.
She also thanked 29 Hermansburg Nursery for the landscaping and Katerthabo Kwemphilo (an initiative by the Department of Agriculture, Rural Development and Environmental Affairs) for the spekboom for the sidewalk.
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“We also want to thank Frik de Jager for the Beetle and Arlo van Heerden from Greenway Consulting who gave us the compost for the garden.
“Thank you to every single person who shared the message on Facebook. We look forward to seeing what it will look like when everything is full-grown and when it blooms,” said Ruval.
