The wind by any other name is still the wind.

In the name of Allah, the Most gracious, the Most merciful.

pic from Sowetanlive.co.za

25 October 2014.

This is the wind that blew in by the backdoor and knocked off my picture that stood behind my cake dome that sent it crashing to smithereens that made me cry - it was a gift from my son. These are the winds that churn up the pollen and make us sneeze and our eyes itch. It is this wind that blew off my favourite crepe scarf and pulled in and draped it over the pomegranate tree all ripped. But I respect the wind because it leaves the air fresh and crisp and the skyline bright.

Usually the October winds come up in the late afternoon and it has blown itself out by early evening. In the morning, we would pick up the plants that fell along the wayside and drench it with water to cajole it to revive. For three days now the wind continues to howl, it picks up the pollen and deposits it in the nets of the curtains; it whirls it around up into our nostrils and eyes and then blows  away again.

In Cape Town these winds are called the south Easter or the Cape Doctor. Living on the slopes of the Dry Dock I knew it would be a windy day just listening to the whoosh of the wind through the trees, an almost eerie sound but the sound that I missed when we were forcibly removed. As a skinny kid, I anticipated putting bricks into my pockets to have more control as the wind would toss me all around when I walked home from school. I would literally walk grabbing the fencing along the way, don’t even talk about the footbridge to the Rahmania School over the Eastern Boulevard (now Nelson Mandela BLVD) where we attended madrassah. In the city it was much worse as one turned the corner, skirts blowing up in faces, fezzes and hats held on tightly, ja the wind. The hardest part is walking against the wind, like one step forward and two steps back.

The open fields of the Cape Flats were a battle on its own. The wind would blow the sand so hard it would sting one’s legs on the way to and from school, one’s ears would ache – and that is why women wear doekies, just kidding. The winds on the Cape Flats erode the soil and leave tracks of land barren.

feverfew

As much as it makes us red in the face it blows away sicknesses and pollution. It lets fishermen know when there is a snoek run. As for the garden, it gives me great delight when odd plants pop up in the soil, courtesy of the wind’s dispersal, like the feverfew and lettuce in the poppy beds.  Were it not for the wind the neighbours wild dagga would not grow on our side of the wall. Ok, Ok also with a bit of nudging from my side too.

The washing on the line is the worse for me as the sheets blow over and over and winds itself so tightly around, I battle to take it off. The wet washing slaps me in the face so often and sometimes the wind is able to snap off the pegs. But I have grown wiser so buy the deluxe Tuffy pegs because it puts up a better fight in keeping the washing in place. It is a bit expensive, but well worth investing in and in such pretty colours too. At the moment it is only sold (as far as I know) at Osmans in Lansdowne. But I am grateful that the wind does dry out the washing quicker and fluff it up a bit.

poppy heads

Gauteng does not experience so much wind you know but the moment there is a hectic storm the trees are sommer uprooted. Cape trees stand with roots firmly in the ground. Ja, the wind. InshaAllah I hope that the wind will die down by tomorrow so we can leave the doors open and work in the garden. We need to weed and replant basil from the trays and today we filled grow bags with soil to prepare for transplants

wigwams

 

I am so impressed with the fruit trees standing their ground and the small fruits hanging on tight, but alas the poppies are no weight for this wind, the blossoms dance away and leave their heads bald. So I plant lots of plants that are hardy and cope well with wind such as indigenous daisies, veggies, sour figs, lavender, bulbinella and wild garlic. 

We fasten the tomatoes, brinjals, chillis and beans to stakes and wigwam the peas. We make hedges of rosemary and flax and make wind breaks with netting, around small trees as well. The delicate plants I position in corners on the stoep and behind walls or low in baths. We pack the young trees tight together like soldiers in tortoise manouvre with shields.

The strawberries are hardy and low down on the ground so are not affected much but should be mulched because the wind strips the surrounding soils and leave them dry. So when you plan your garden, be cognizant of the weather. Know that the wind comes from the south and the rain comes from the north in Cape Town.

 Later

Plant food and be weather-wise.

 Yasmine

broad beans staked

 

 



flax borders