The Working for Water programme – introduced through the Department of Water Affairs and Forestry – is a staunch fighter against alien invasive plants in South Africa.  It is estimated that around 10% of our country is covered with approximately 9000 species of alien invasive plants, which steal water, nutrients and sunlight from our native flora.

The Working for Water programme was initiated in 1995 and has since then cleared out more than a million hectares of alien invasive plants.  It works in conjunction with the Departments of Agriculture, Trade and Industry, and Environmental Affairs and Tourism, as well as, local governments and communities.  Around 20 000 people are trained and provided with jobs every year, due to the Working for Water programme.

This programme uses four methods of clearing and controlling areas which have been invaded by alien plants, namely mechanical (felling, burning and removing), chemical (environmentally safe herbicides), biological (species-specific diseases and insects), and integrated methods, which combines all of the above.

You can do your share of working for water in your own garden, by planting only indigenous gardens and by employing environmentally friendly measures in dealing with pests and diseases on your plants. 

A water wise garden consists of plants that do not require a lot of watering.  These plants are normally indigenous plants, which can survive on rainfall and do not need additional watering.  Succulents are also very water wise plants and look beautiful when planted in masses. 

Hard landscaping features, such as sculptures, trellises, wooden decking, cobble lines, stepping stones, cement screed blocks, feature walls, garden benches and other exterior décor will decorate your garden and requires no water.  Different textures will add dimension to the garden lay-out.

By reducing your lawn area, you will also save on water.  Mulching – layering bark chips, hay, pebbles or grass cuttings – will keep the soil around your plants moist for longer periods and therefore require less watering.

When you have a drip-irrigation system installed, you will also save water.  You can set your irrigation system to water the garden at certain times of the day, such as early morning, when the sun will not just evaporate all the water.

Even weeding regularly will make your garden water wise, as all these unnecessary plants also use a lot of water. 

By using organic fertilizers in your garden, you will be applying responsible measures to ensure that your plants are healthy and grow to their best potential.  You will also be contributing to the fight against soil and water table contamination. 

Organic fertilizers, for instance raise the nutrient content in your garden soil, which feeds your plants and assists the roots of your plants in getting optimal nutrition from the soil.  The three most important nutrients needed by your plants are phosphor, potassium and nitrogen.

Another advantage of using organic fertilizers is that it enhances your soil composition and improves water retention, which in turn does its part in combating drought.

By using organic pesticides in your garden, you will be applying responsible measures to ensure that garden animals, birds, insects, reptiles and amphibians will not suffer poisoning. You will also not harm your pets and you will be contributing to the prevention of soil and water table contamination. 

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner and can provide the home owner with any exterior decorative feature.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

Show gardens are boast gardens. These gardens are designed and implemented exclusively for décor and gardening shows to show the public what the landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping we are capable of doing.

You can catch our latest show garden at Decorex Johannesburg from 6 to 10 August 2009 at the Gallagher Convention Centre in Midrand. The theme for this year’s expo is New Fusion and aims to promote environmentally friendly designs and products. Our innovative and inspiring stand will be in Hall 3.

Our in-house décor company, Badec Bros Deco, can manufacture any type of trendy exterior décor that your heart desires. Badec Bros Wooden Decking, our in-house wooden decking company, is a highly professional and qualified company, fit to install your wooden decking in a variety of wood types with a range of stylish finishes. Stunning mosaic features can be designed and created by our in-house mosaic company, Badec Bros Mosaic.

Kingfisher Landscaping can design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner. We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service. We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

A Japanese garden is probably the most therapeutic garden.  With its evergreen plants, tranquil water features and elegant, flowing lines, the Japanese garden quickly eases your mood and relaxes your mind, soul and body.

Plants typically used in Japanese gardens consist of perennial plants.  This means that your garden will be green all year round and that you will not need to remove any plants every year.  Should you want to add splashes of colour to your Japanese garden, you can allocate a small area to seasonal colour.

Japanese gardens are timeless and will always be an attractive attribute to complement your home.  Small gardens or courtyards are also suitable for Japanese gardens. 

Hard landscaping features, such as oriental sculptures, stone lanterns, water features with an eastern theme, trellises, wooden decking, cobble lines, paths created with stepping stones, water basins, cement screed blocks, feature walls, garden benches and other exterior décor will decorate your garden and requires no water.  Different textures will add dimension to the garden lay-out.

Our in-house décor company, Badec Bros Deco, can manufacture any type of trendy exterior décor that your heart desires.  Badec Bros Wooden Decking, our in-house wooden decking company, is a highly professional and qualified company, fit to install your wooden decking in a variety of wood types with a range of stylish finishes.

Another typical Japanese garden feature is the shishi odoshi – which looks like a bamboo shaduf.  Water runs into one end of a horizontal bamboo rod (which is attached to two vertical bamboo rods) and eventually causes the horizontal bamboo to drop to the opposite side.  Once it has run empty it pivots back to its original position onto a flat stone, which emits a striking sound.  The cycle repeats continuously.  Traditionally this device was used to scare of browsing and grazing animals, to protect the plants in the garden.  Nowadays it is used to create a soothing rhythm in your garden.

Plants and trees in a Japanese garden are characteristically trimmed into neat shapes.  Beautifully manipulated bonsai can form stunning focal points in your Japanese gardens.

Ultimately, the garden design of a Japanese garden should harmonize with the architectural style of the home and with the tastes of the home owner.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

If you want practical exterior space for entertaining and relaxation, which is strategically enhanced by focal features and feature plants, a minimalist garden is the answer.  Minimalist design is based on immaculate and elegant lines and features, and requires low maintenance.  This type of garden features more hard landscaping and decorative features, than plants.

Minimalist plants that we typically use include bold, sleek feature plants, such as aloes, succulents and trees with an orderly appearance, such as leopard trees.  Groundcovers, such as mondo grass, diamondias and rock roses are also perfect for the minimalist garden.  Adding water to the overall garden design will augment the end result and convey a soothing ambience. 

Hard landscaping features to be utilized in a minimalist garden include water features, sculptures, trellises, wooden decking, cobble lines, stepping stones, cement screed blocks, feature walls, garden benches and other exterior décor.  Different textures will add dimension to the garden lay-out.

Our in-house décor company, Badec Bros Deco, can manufacture any type of trendy exterior décor that your heart desires.  Badec Bros Wooden Decking, our in-house wooden decking company, is a highly professional and qualified company, fit to install your wooden decking in a variety of wood types with a range of stylish finishes.

The key recipe is to marry the feature plants and hard landscaping features to create a neat, aesthetically pleasing unit. 

Ultimately, the garden design of a minimalist garden should harmonize with the architectural style of the home and with the tastes of the home owner.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

With Badec Bros Landscaping, trading as Kingfisher Landscaping, being such a contemporary landscaping company, which continuously keeps up with international standards and trends, most of our garden designs are very modern.

A modern garden design incorporates trend-setting design ideas and state-of-the-art landscaping products.  Modern gardens tend to have clean lines running through the entire garden. 

Neatly demarcated “rooms” and borders can be created by using cobble stones, stepping stones, screed blocks and short, fluffy plants. 

Texture and layers can be included into the garden design by using different materials, varying from chunky arrabella rock (quartz dump rock), to plump succulents, spiky aloe’s, fluffy sedges, and hardscaping features, such as raised plants beds, terraces, water features, koi ponds and wooden decking.

Tree aloes (aloe bainesii) – Africa’s largest aloes – have a striking, sleek appearance and will perfectly complement a modern garden as feature plants.  There are many stunning plants to be used as focal points in the contemporary garden. 

Trendy exterior décor products are also often used to complement and round-off a modern garden design.  Our in-house garden décor company, Badec Bros Deco, can create a wide range of exciting décor products to enhance the overall beauty of the garden.

Ultimately, the garden design of a modern garden should harmonize with the architectural style of the home and with the tastes of the home owner.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

A deck is defined as a flat surface capable of supporting weight, but typically constructed outdoors. During the last century, patios were often built with concrete, slate or some other solid construction, but today there is a much greater trend for patio decking to be made out of wood, similar to the decking of a ship. Wood or timber patio decking can be used in a number of ways – as part of garden landscaping, to extend living areas of houses, and as an alternative to stone based features such as patios. Decks are often made from treated lumber or from a composite material made from mixed plastics and wood fibre (often called “composite” lumber). Artificial decking products are often called “wood-plastic composites”.

The deck of a house is generally a wooden platform built above the ground and connected to the main part of the building. It is generally enclosed by a railing for safety. Access may be from the house through doors and from the garden via a stairway. It is possible to construct patio decking in a relatively short time, and though it can be erected by a sound DIY man, it is often better to have patio decking constructed by a professional team. There is a growing trend to making use of this type of deck as somewhere to relax and watch the setting sun – somewhere to enjoy “sundowners”. If you are interested in having decking installed, or if you have any queries that we can answer, please don’t hesitate to call us.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

There are a number of principles that form the basis of good garden design and that result in gardens that meet the needs of their owners. Consideration has to be given not only to the layout of the hard landscape, that is paths, water features, walls, paving and decking, but also to the plants themselves. There is also the actual need or desire of the owner to be taken care of as well as seasonal restrictions. Garden design must also take into account maintenance and irrigation requirements and the amount of funds available for both construction and upkeep of the project.

If there are to be limitations in the budget, then garden design will probably come up with either a simpler garden with fewer plants and cheaper hard features, or with a garden that is created part by part as the owners can afford it. Garden design may be carried out by the garden owners themselves, or alternatively by professionals with diverse levels of experience and expertise.

Most professional landscapers are trained in the principles of design and also in horticulture, and they usually have an expert knowledge and experience of using plants in different situations. Occasionally the design of your garden is going to depend on features that cannot be moved, such as large boulders. This type of feature is actually useful in providing a focal point around which the rest of the garden can be planned. Planning the outside area yourself can be immense fun. and the finished product can give you enormous satisfaction.

The landscaping experts at Kingfisher Landscaping design and implement exceptional and beautiful gardens in a professional manner.  We pride ourselves in providing our clients with excellent, efficient and comprehensive service.  We offer all the products and services associated with creating a peaceful, and aesthetically pleasing outdoor living space which will complement the style of your home and in which you can relax.

We are proud to inform you that Kingfisher Landscaping, Badec Bros Deco, Badec Bros Wooden Decking and Badec Bros Mosaic received 5 certificates at the DesignEx 2009!! 

We received a Gold Certificate, Merit Award for the Best Use of Colour and a Merit Award for the Most Innovative Concept for our Al Fresco Gallery stand.  Our Sculptured Sanctuary stand won a Bronze Certificate and a Merit Award for the Most Water Wise Garden.

This exciting event is hosted by Safari Garden Centre, on the corner of Lynnwood and Rubida Streets in The Willows, Pretoria East. The show features stands designed by landscaping designers from across Gauteng and will run until the end of May 2009.  You are welcome to visit the show and amble through all the miniature gardens at your leisure. 

Our stands – Al Fresco Gallery and Sculptured Sanctuary – display the pioneering designing prowess of our team with regard to both hardscaping and soft landscaping (Kingfisher Landscaping); innovative exterior steel décor (Badec Bros Deco); eye-catching wooden decking (Badec Bros Wooden Decking), as well as, striking mosaic art (Badec Bros Mosaic). 

Our energetic sales representative, Mareleen van Zijl, is more than willing to arrange a meeting with you.  Should you be interested in meeting with Mareleen, please do not hesitate to contact her on her cell phone at 078 800 5112, the office number at 012 460 7990, or via e-mail at mareleen@badecbros.com

You can extend your living and entertainment areas simply by having a wooden deck installed in your garden.  The experts at Kingfisher Landscaping are more than able to incorporate a wooden deck into your garden design. 

Our sister company, Badec Bros Wooden Decking, will meet you at your home to take the required measurements for your proposed deck and supply you with a free, no-obligation quotation.  Upon acceptance of the quotation, the Badec Bros Wooden Decking experts will install your deck in the quickest, most professional manner.

There are many types of wood to choose from for your wooden deck.  Typically we use seligna, teak and balau wood for our wooden decks, with each type of wood having its own set of advantages.  Should you be uncertain about the type of wood for your deck, we will gladly supply you with a quotation on all three preferred types, along with the advantages of each kind, in order to assist you in making your final decision.

Seligna and teak can be finished a range of colours, by means of varnish.  Balau wood ages naturally, giving it a beautiful, mature appearance in time.

We have more news for you with regard to the Safari DesignEx 2009 show in Pretoria from 20 March 2009.

Kingfisher Landscaping, Badec Bros Deco, Badec Bros Wooden Decking and Badec Bros Mosaic will be strutting their stuff at this exciting show by featuring two stands – Al Fresco Gallery and Sculptured Sanctuary.

Our energetic sales representative, Mareleen van Zijl, will be at the Al Fresco Gallery stand on Saturday, 21 March 2009 to introduce you to our stylish and exclusive range of outdoor decor.

We look forward to seeing you there!