Abstract
When Mangaung’s old Waaihoek location was gradually demolished between 1918 and 1941 and its residents were relocated to the new Batho location, an embryonic gardening culture was also transferred there. The Municipality of Bloemfontein’s mostly English-speaking officials envisaged Batho as a “model location” with an “exemplary” layout which provided for individual stands big enough to lay out gardens. Batho became known as a “garden location” because of the English-style gardens that were subsequently laid out and the gardening culture that emerged among mostly middle-class residents. During the period 1918 to 1939, Batho’s gardening culture developed, became established, and then flourished due to the residents’ own efforts, as well as initiatives taken by key municipal officials and councillors. These initiatives include: the allocation of allotments for laying out market-gardens; the establishment of a fresh-produce market; the establishment of a Garden Committee; and the appointment of a permanent black horticulturist. When Batho’s gardening culture became stagnant, garden and tree-planting competitions were used as a means of revival. Despite the relative “success” of the municipality’s initiatives, they were undermined by, among others, drought conditions; inadequate water supply to gardeners; general apathy among location residents; the absence of title deeds for location stands; segregation policies; and suspected ulterior motives of white officials and councillors. In actual fact, some of these seemingly well-meaning initiatives served white interests; they were meant to soften the effects of territorial segregation and they were motivated by personal prestige. Because of deteriorating socio-economic conditions and other social ills that beset Batho towards the late 1930s, its gardening “golden age” came to an end with the outbreak of the Second World War in 1939.
Keywords: Batho, gardens, gardening culture, garden competitions, locations, Mangaung, tree-planting
INTRODUCTION
The history of black1 people’s gardens and gardening culture is a neglected genre in South African historiography. This may be attributed to the misconception that black people are not interested in gardening and that they consequently lack a gardening culture. In truth, the garden history and gardening culture of black people – particularly the residents of South Africa’s urban townships2 – have a long history, which deserves the same attention as white people’s garden history.3 Sadly, the history of black people’s
gardening culture and how it has developed over time, has remained neglected and therefore, hidden. The majority of academic studies conducted on South African garden history and gardening culture focuses on white people’s gardens.4 The reasons for this oversight could be ascribed to a lack of interest in this topic among historians and to the scarcity of historical sources. As a result, the few studies, which either focus entirely on the subject5 or which refer to the subject,6 are exploratory, including this one. Gardens only receive scant attention in studies that focus primarily on the history of black housing and township planning.7 This article is positioned in the genre of garden and landscape history as an academic field of study.
The main objective is to address the void in black people’s history by exploring the historical development of a gardening culture among residents of Batho, Mangaung’s (Bloemfontein’s) oldest existing township (Fig. 1). The name Mangaung,8 a Sesotho word which means “place of the cheetah”, has historically referred to Bloemfontein’s black “locations”.9 This article explores the development of a gardening culture in Batho from a cultural- historical perspective. The reason for this approach is because gardens and gardening are considered expressions of culture. A garden is essentially a work of culture, that is, a human construct brought about by a form of cultural labour called “gardening”.10 Thus, a close relationship exists between a garden, gardening, and culture. Because gardening is a cultural activity the term “gardening culture” may then be defined as “the culture related to the cultivating of gardens”. Sociologist Michel Conan’s definition of a garden underscores this argument: “the garden is an artificially maintained biotope that depends upon the social culture of its gardeners for survival over time.”11 A garden is the end product of gardening as cultural labour; therefore, a garden and its related gardening culture are studied in the context of cultural history.12
This article focuses on the period from 1918 to 1939, starting with the year when Batho was officially established by the Municipality of Bloemfontein (hereafter referred to as “the municipality”) and ending with the outbreak of the Second World War (hereafter referred to as “the War”; 1939–1945). This period covers the cultural-historical timeframe in which this article is placed. The development of Batho’s gardening culture between 1918 and 1939 is broadly divided into two stages, namely from the early 1920s to the late 1920s and from the late 1920s to the late 1930s, respectively. The year 1939 is significant because the start of the War signalled the end of Batho’s “golden age”13 as both a “model location” and “garden location”14 due to the War-time socio-economic decline that affected Batho and other
locations in the Union of South Africa (1910–1961; hereafter referred to as “the Union”). This trend had a detrimental effect on the state of gardens in Batho and, by implication, on the location’s gardening culture.
Concerning the sources used for this article, it must be stressed that documentary evidence was crucial because very few historical visual depictions of Batho have survived. In addition to reliable secondary sources written by Paul Maylam, Nicholas Coetzer, Maynard Swanson, R.V. Selope- Thema, and Sol Plaatje, this article relies heavily on archival sources dating from the period in question. The records of the municipality, including mayors’ minutes, minutes of committee meetings, and the Location Superintendents’ reports, provided most of the primary sources that were used to research the historical development of Batho’s gardening culture. Oral history interviews conducted with Batho gardeners presented additional primary evidence.
BATHO AS A “MODEL LOCATION” AND “GARDEN LOCATION”
Batho was established in 1918 as a new location for Bloemfontein’s black and coloured people. The municipality decided to demolish the old Waaihoek location and between 1918 and 1941 Waaihoek’s residents were resettled in a new location situated further away from the “white town”. The most important reason15 for this decision was rooted in racial prejudice, namely the fact that Waaihoek was deemed to be situated too close to Bloemfontein’s business centre and the adjacent white residential areas. The majority of Bloemfontein’s whites did not consider people of colour to be true citizens of the town but merely “servants of the townspeople”.16 As a result, the majority of Batho’s residents – most of whom were of Sotho-Tswana, San (/Xam), or Khoekhoe descent – were former Waaihoek residents who were relocated.17 Importantly, the embryonic gardening culture which had already existed in Waaihoek was also transferred to Batho.
Similar to other locations that were established in the Union during the period in question, Batho was founded to appease Bloemfontein’s white electorate and to implement the Union government’s policy of race-based spatial segregation. Segregation was a racist and discriminatory socio-political system which preceded the apartheid system (1948–1994).18 Law no. 8 of 1893 first authorised town councils in the Orange Free State republic (1854–1899) to enforce statutory segregation; subsequently, additional ordinances19 issued during the Orange River Colony (1900–1910) further entrenched segregation until 1923 when new legislation20 was passed. Although not mandatory at that time, “general segregation principles”21 and segregationist town planning regulations stipulated that locations such as Batho had to be laid out on the outskirts of white towns and cities, preferably with a physical barrier or open space between the location and the white area. In Batho’s case, the Cape Town-Johannesburg railway track and the empty buffer strips on both sides of the track served as a barrier (Fig. 1).22
The municipality envisaged Batho not only as a “model location”23 laid out according to “the best town-planning lines”24 but also as a “garden location”.25 The fact that South Africa had been a British colony until 1910 and then a dominion of the British Empire until 1961, meant that local town planning ideas and policies were strongly influenced by developments in Britain. The Garden City Movement of British town planning visionary Ebenezer Howard (1850–1928) was particularly influential.26 Some key municipal officials and councillors, most of whom were English-speaking and born and bred in Britain, took an active interest in developing Batho as a garden location.27 To achieve this objective, steps were taken in terms of the Model Location Regulations28 (hereafter referred to as “the Regulations”) which made provision for better houses29 and individual stands to be “not less than 50 feet by 50 feet”30 so as to provide enough space for the laying out of front gardens.
Furthermore, the Regulations stipulated the duties of the municipality and the Superintendent of Locations31 about the general maintenance of a model location and also of “standholders”32 to keep their “site [stand] in good condition”.33 The Regulations, which included the “complements of a model location”34 that emphasised the importance of aesthetics (read as proper housing, gardens, and tree-planting), significantly shaped the appearance of Batho’s man-made landscape35 until the end of the 1930s. One of the important side-effects of this intervention was the laying out of ornamental front gardens and, importantly, the emergence of a distinctive garden style and a gardening culture that showed British or English36 cultural influences. Cottage-style gardens37 were mostly symmetrical with a garden path leading from the garden gate straight to the front door. The garden path divided the front garden into two symmetrical halves in which circular, rectangular, or square flowerbeds edged with overlapping bricks or stones were typically laid out (Fig. 2).38 In addition to the contributions made by municipal officers and councillors, the important role played by Batho’s garden labourers, who worked in white people’s gardens in town, must also be stressed. These labourers were directly exposed to the garden styles and practices in their employers’ gardens. Maria Marumo (born 1938), whose father Geelbooi Mofokeng worked as a gardener for whites during the 1930s and 1940s, was convinced that “the white [people’s] gardens were an influence”39 on the style and layout of location gardens. Most garden labourers maintained their own gardens in Batho; consequently, elements of the white people’s garden styles such as the preference for a formal layout, symmetry, and clipped hedges and edges, were transferred to Batho.40
THE DEVELOPMENT OF BATHO’S
GARDENING CULTURE I: THE EARLY TO LATE 1920s
“Much healthy competition in building and gardening”:41 Batho’s emerging gardening culture
An eloquent historical description of Batho’s gardens is contained in a piece written by Emilie Solomon for The Cape Times. Solomon, who attended a trade union convention in Bloemfontein in 1922, wrote that she saw “little orchards and gardens surround the houses” in “this splendid location”.42
In addition, she noticed “much healthy competition in building and gardening” and everyone “seemed happy and contented.”43 Solomon’s impressions, which were also published in Umteteli wa Bantu44 in that same year, not only revealed the mostly middle-class residents’ enthusiasm for gardening but it also underscored the existence of an emerging gardening culture in Batho. Significantly, Solomon’s reference to “much healthy competition” supports the argument that an underlying gardening culture had developed to such an extent that it had reached the point where gardeners were confident to “compete” with one another. This competitive spirit, so to speak, was already evident barely four years after Batho’s founding; this serves as proof that the gardening culture which had already existed in Waaihoek, was successfully transferred to Batho when Waaihoek’s residents were relocated there.45
Documentary evidence supporting the existence of an emerging gardening culture in Batho during its early years was found in municipal records. In the annual 1922–1923 report, Bloemfontein’s mayor, Mr W.M. Barnes,46 noted that he was struck by the fact that “our natives have a keen civic pride in their location which makes for better, cleaner living”.47
This statement is significant because the mayor’s reference to “keen civic pride” indicates that some Batho residents had taken “ownership” of their new location and, as a result, had accepted “responsibility” for its beautification. Batho’s standholders did not own the stands on which their houses were built but they owned the houses. In Batho, as it was the case in the rest of the Orange Free State, the issue of ownership was characterised by an anomaly. This skewed ownership policy was sanctioned by the Natives’ Land Act (no. 27 of 1913) and it was rooted in the belief that the locations were not the permanent residence of black people. Locations were, to quote the journalist, Henry Selby Msimang (1886–1982; Fig. 3): “places set aside for the habitation of casual labourers”,48 that is, temporary living areas where black people, who were employed by whites, could stay.49 Ironically, Batho’s residents felt urged to beautify their houses by laying out gardens – even if this was done on land that did not belong to them.
As it was the case in other locations, a title deed or security of tenure was not necessarily a requirement for Batho’s residents to improve and stamp their individuality on their domestic environments.50
In the above-mentioned annual report, Barnes drew a parallel between the Batho residents’ civic pride and sense of ownership, on the one hand, and the potential for “cleaner” living on the other hand.51 By the same token, a parallel may also be drawn between civic pride and a desire to garden because laying out gardens is rooted in an urge to improve one’s immediate environment.52 It seems as though a desire for gardening had become fairly widespread among Batho residents by the mid-1920s. For example, in 1925, the residents of Lovedale Road in Batho’s Cape Stands section (Fig. 1) officially asked the Town Council (hereafter referred to as “the council”) for permission to “extend the frontage of their stands by 9 ft.”,53 evidently to secure a larger space for their front gardens.
This request was granted despite the fact that, as a result, the width of Lovedale Road’s sidewalks was considerably reduced, which left the impression that bigger front gardens enjoyed priority.54
A desire for gardening, which was expressed by members of the Batho community, serves as evidence of a gardening culture that was taking root, especially among the so-called “better class natives”,55 to quote the Anglican Bishop of Bloemfontein, Dr Walter Cary (1875–1955; Fig. 4). During a meeting with the Native Affairs Committee (hereafter referred to as “the NAC”),56 Carey argued that the “better class natives were anxious to show not only for their own uplifting, but for all their kindred Bantus, that they were capable of self-help.”57 Despite the patronising
tone of Carey’s words, they were uttered by one of Bloemfontein’s leading white men who, according to The Friend,58 “cared for the Native peoples.”59 Apart from a need to show their ability to erect fine houses and to improve their standard of living, Batho’s middle-class felt the need to show that “self- help” also meant their ability to lay out attractive gardens (Figs 5 & 6). Many aspirations of this class of location resident related to the urge to display a certain level of “civilisation”. A close link between a person’s perceived level of civilisation and the ability to lay out and maintain gardens existed in the white English-speaking public opinion60 – a perception that was seemingly transferred to Batho’s middle-class.61 It was not only the location residents who wanted to garden; influential individuals such as key municipal officials, including the Superintendent of Locations, the Town Clerk, the Location Medical Practitioner, and certain councillors also wanted to see a lively gardening culture in Batho. During the 1920s and 1930s, when British town planning theories became entrenched in South African public discourse,62 it was widely acknowledged that the immediate domestic environment had a profound effect on the general conduct of communities, including the Union’s locations.63
Significantly, an awareness of new town planning trends was also noticeable among members of the black literate middle-class such as Msimang and the Batho community leader Thomas Mapikela (1869–1945; Fig. 7). Msimang emphasised the importance of proper town planning for the Union’s locations in an opinion piece that he wrote for Umteteli wa Bantu. He noticed “a generous feeling among thinking Europeans in favour of a drastic change in the existing conditions”64 in locations and he was
convinced that “the old idea of controlling Natives anyhow and housing them in tin shanties is gradually giving place to quite a new conception.”65 According to Msimang’s opinion, the success of better location planning also “depends upon our personal and national efforts to improve existing conditions”66 in the locations. He referred to location residents’ own initiatives to improve their domestic environments in ways which included gardening; if only the planting of vegetable seeds. The fact that an advertisement for Kirchoff’s Seeds (Fig. 8) was prominently placed right next to Msimang’s article is noteworthy.
To create an aesthetically pleasing environment in Batho, Bishop Carey and some “progressive”67 councillors such as Messrs I.H. Haarburger, J.H.B. Reitz, R.C. Streeten, and D. Urquhart,68 openly voiced their desire for a gardening culture to develop among location residents.69 Noble as it may seem, the white municipal officials’ sentiment must be seen in the context of racial segregation. Although segregation was primarily rooted in racism and in white people’s fear of being overwhelmed by a black majority, there was also a perception among whites that people of colour were unclean and prone to disease.70 This exaggerated fear of disease – the so-called “sanitation syndrome”71 – was used as another justification for people of colour to be territorially segregated from whites and to be restricted to locations. Yet, it was believed that people of colour could still present a health menace to whites in their segregated locations; therefore, the locations had to be well-planned, orderly, clean, and aesthetically pleasing to be hygienic. The rationale that underpinned this thinking was illustrated in a letter from Bloemfontein’s Town Clerk, Mr J.P. Logan, to the mayor in which Logan argued that “it paid the Europeans for the Natives to have sanitary homes – hygienic surroundings [read as gardens] – good water supplies – sanitation – recreation grounds etc.”72 It was reasoned that Bloemfontein’s whites would benefit if a gardening culture developed in Batho because it would then lead
to a “sanitary” location and to “healthy” location residents which, in turn, meant “healthy” domestic servants and garden labourers.73 This argument raises the question as to whom the council considered primary beneficiaries of the garden location idea: Batho’s residents or Bloemfontein’s white electorate? In addition to the “sanitation syndrome”, another argument in favour of a gardening culture in Batho was strengthened by the belief that such a culture would focus the Batho residents’ attention on their own location gardens. Such a “distraction” would divert their attention from the whites-only public parks and squares, notably Hoffman Square, King’s Park, and
Hamilton Park. In the same way in which white bureaucrats considered sport and ballroom dancing to be “proper” leisure activities that could pacify and depoliticise an increasingly politically conscious and restless location population,74 gardening was considered a “noble” pastime that could serve the same purpose.75 The question as to whether this objective was a hidden motive for the garden location idea should be raised. The council’s decision to lay out a “park”76 near Batho’s entrance for the exclusive use of location residents is rooted in this novel type of segregationist thinking and moral self-righteousness on the part of Bloemfontein’s white bureaucrats. Councillor J.S. Franklin’s77 explanation of the rationale behind the new park exemplifies this mentality: The council’s objective with the new park was to “encourage the natives away from the parks in town”.78 The emphasis on gardening and a gardening culture served to disguise the fact that Batho’s residents were subjected to the same segregationist policies as any other location. The focus on a “proper” and “noble” pastime, namely gardening, was meant to soften the effects of territorial segregation.
“Competition in the growing of vegetables is keener”:79 Batho’s market-gardening culture
According to municipal records, a gardening culture was fully established in Batho towards the mid- 1920s. In his annual locations report of 1925–1926, the new Superintendent of Locations, John Richard Cooper (1881–1946; Fig. 9),80 stated that “gardening and tree-planting are encouraged”81 among residents. In addition, he observed that “competition in the growing of vegetables is keener”.82 Cooper’s mention of competition between Batho’s gardeners being “keener” is significant because it indicates the existence of a lively gardening culture – in this case also a vegetable gardening culture. His observation confirms Emilie Solomon’s impression of the existence of a healthy competitive spirit among residents during her visit to Batho in 1922. Eager to cement his legacy, the vigilant superintendent saw an opportunity to make the most of the gardening enthusiasm among Batho’s gardeners. Therefore, Cooper played a key role in the establishment of a new fresh produce market (known as “Maraka”) for Batho. This facility, erected in bustling Fort Hare Road (Fig. 1) and completed in 1929, bolstered Batho’s emerging market-gardening culture.83 In the same year, he reported in the patronising language of the time that Batho’s market-gardeners were earning an “honest living” by the sale of their produce which, in the majority of cases, was “excellent in quality.”84 Vegetables were grown in home gardens and in “garden allotments”85 allocated to selected standholders on the banks of the Kaffirfontein Spruit86 and on the open piece of land adjacent to Cook Avenue (Fig. 1). According to Mohau Phakoe (born 1942), his parents, Adam and Lydia Phakoe, referred to the area as “Masimo”87 because of the maize (Zea mays) that was planted there in small patches.88 Towards the mid- 1920s, the allotments were fully utilised by market- gardeners who had become successful vegetable growers. This trend points to the fact that many Batho gardeners had moved beyond traditional subsistence farming by embracing market-gardening.89 Cooper confirmed this phenomenon when he reported that the growing of vegetables was “gradually replacing the proverbial mealie”.90 In effect, it meant that vegetables, which were easy to cultivate, were increasingly consumed together with the traditional staple food, namely maize. In addition to the market- gardeners’ own efforts, credit is also due to Batho’s Garden Committee (hereafter referred to as “the Committee”). Cooper played an important role in establishing the Committee, which signalled a major step forward in the development of Batho’s gardening culture. The Committee consisted of municipal officers and members of the Native Advisory Board (hereafter referred to as “the NAB”);91 this board was, among others, responsible for supervising the allocation of allotments. Chaired by the enthusiastic gardening expert with a diploma in horticulture, Ms M.S. Moikangoa,92 the Committee contributed to the establishment of a solid market-gardening culture in Batho towards the end of the 1920s.93
Cooper was hopeful that Batho’s flourishing market- gardening culture would also influence those mostly working-class residents, who were not interested in gardening, but who could possibly be convinced to lay out gardens once they have realised the benefits involved. He was adamant that Batho’s gardening culture should rest on sound horticultural knowledge and not merely on popular wisdom. Although this was mainly applicable to vegetable gardening, ornamental gardening was not excluded. To raise the standard of gardening, Cooper and others who were concerned with the Batho residents’ well-being, saw the need for the appointment of a full-time black gardening instructor who could teach them gardening skills and disseminate horticultural know-how. In his
monthly locations report of September 1930, Cooper reported that Ms Moikangoa was tasked to provide standholders with gardening advice. An amount of
£1.5 per month was approved to cover her expenses, including the purchasing of seed to distribute free of charge. Moikangoa’s efforts must have paid off because long-time Batho resident, Sarah Mahabane (born 1927; now deceased), recalled that Batho indeed looked like a garden location when she was a young child: “Batho was a beautiful location in those days – it was green and there were many beautiful gardens everywhere”.94 To Moikangoa’s credit, it can also be stated that not long after her appointment, the cultivation of vegetables for market-gardening purposes had expanded. Her efforts gave further impetus to the residents’ enthusiasm for growing vegetables that had already received a boost with the opening of Batho’s fresh produce market the previous year.95
THE DEVELOPMENT OF BATHO’S GARDENING CULTURE II: THE LATE 1920s TO THE LATE 1930s
“The best gardens in the locations”:96 Garden competitions as a tool to revive Batho’s gardening culture
Batho’s reputation as a model location, which was also becoming a garden location due to its strengthening gardening culture, attracted the interest of mayors and other senior officials of towns and cities across the Union. Some of them visited Batho because they wanted to see it for themselves. It seems as if these visits have played an important role in the decision by some local individuals that garden competitions should be introduced as an incentive to further encourage gardening. It was reasoned that such competitions, which had become popular among white gardeners, could persuade Batho’s residents to make their location attractive to visitors and to themselves. Ironically, Batho’s first garden competition was not initiated by a local resident but by one of the distinguished visitors, namely the Mayor of Pietermaritzburg. Mayor Hardy, who visited Batho in 1926, was so inspired by the new location and its gardens that he offered prize money to the value of £1.1 for “the best kept garden in the location.”97 It was not all praise, though, because Hardy also criticised the poor condition of Batho’s streets,98 which serves as a reminder that not everything about the model location was praiseworthy. Therefore, one must guard against a romanticised view of Batho despite the fact that it was in a much better shape than the majority of the Union’s locations such as Alexandra (Johannesburg) and Ndabeni (Cape Town),99 to name but two.
Batho’s gardeners responded positively to Hardy’s initiative and, the following year, the Location Medical Practitioner, Dr J. Lovius, announced another garden competition. This competition was better organised than the previous one because Lovius directly involved Batho’s influential “blockmen” (ward councillors) in his project. The blockmen, who had been requested to “urge competitors to call for seeds as soon as possible”,100 had since then played an important role in the success of Batho’s garden competitions by encouraging residents to participate. In addition to floating trophies, prize money also became a lucrative drawing card. Considering the challenging socio-economic conditions that many Batho residents faced during that time, it does not surprise that financial reward became an effective tool to convince gardeners to participate, despite the fact that the true motives of the initiators of such competitions were not always clear. Was it only about the noble ideal of encouraging gardening in Batho or did personal prestige of having initiated such competitions and of having donated prize money also play a role? The fact that the affluent land-surveyor, Gustav Baumann (1858–1930), enthusiastically supported Lovius’ initiative by publicly donating £1.1 as prize money, raised some eyebrows.101
Despite the initial enthusiasm for garden competitions, it appears as though the fervour for them was not shared by all Batho gardeners. It was decided that the competition initiated by Lovius would be an annual one and Councillor Franklin managed to secure the council’s support for this project. Franklin had no difficulty in obtaining the necessary support because he already had the buy-in of key municipal officials. Being aware of the waning enthusiasm for competitions among some Batho gardeners, he attempted to make the competition more lucrative by offering £5 for “the best garden in the Location”.102 Alas, the drought conditions that gripped Bloemfontein and much of the Orange Free State at the beginning of 1928 dampened enthusiasm for garden competitions; Batho’s gardeners were dependent on a few communal taps which, according to Phakoe, were strategically placed on street corners. Gardening was a challenge because residents had to queue up for their turn and water had to be carried to gardens in buckets or pushed on wheelbarrows.103 Consequently, Cooper reported that gardening in Batho had been “disappointing”. He mentioned a “lack of interest”104 but it is unclear as to whether it was the result of the drought or general apathy which had set in. Did some Batho gardeners suspect hidden motives in the light of the council’s recent efforts to declare Bloemfontein’s public parks and squares off-limits to people of colour on the basis of racial segregation?105 These suspicions and the practical challenges that gardeners were facing, emphasise the fact that the council’s attempts – whether well- intended or not – to develop a gardening culture in Batho were not without frustrations and setbacks. Therefore, it is vital to guard against the impression that the interest in gardening among location residents, specifically the “educated and advanced Native”106 as Cooper referred to Batho’s middle- class, was enthusiastic and widespread at all times.
The council and, specifically, the fervent Cooper did not allow droughts and dampened enthusiasm to hamper their efforts to use garden competitions as a tool to revive the gardening culture in the locations. The term “locations” is used deliberately because Bochabela,107 a new location founded in 1925, was also included in all present and future efforts. Thanks to good rainfall, the prospects looked more promising for location gardeners at the start of the 1928–1929 gardening season. The improved circumstances prompted Cooper to further refine the location garden competition concept. In October 1928, he announced his “principal points”108 that had to be observed for the adjudication and awarding of prizes for the best gardens. Apart from general layout, neatness, and the overall quality and condition of the plants, criteria such as design and creativity also scored high points. The prevalence of clipped hedges (Fig. 10) and “township topiary”109 (Fig. 11) must have been considered during the adjudication because by then these trends – initially made popular by white gardeners – had become fairly widespread among location gardeners.110 The Committee, chaired by the Assistant Superintendent of Locations Mr R.N. Brits, ensured that everything was in place for the adjudication of gardens scheduled for January and February the following year.111
For undisclosed reasons, the adjudication of location gardens scheduled for early 1929 never took place. Cooper lamented the fact that the garden competition, which was originally scheduled for January and February, never materialised “for one reason and another”;112 consequently, it had to be postponed. Once again, questions concerning hidden motives remain unanswered. Why was a garden competition scheduled to take place during the time of year when Bloemfontein gardens were not at their best, that is, during the scorching months of high summer? Six months later – in September 1929 – Cooper unexpectedly announced the launch
of yet another new garden competition. Sensing the need to rejuvenate the location residents’ interest in gardening, Cooper felt “it was now time that something was done in the matter”.113 The fact that the members of the esteemed NAB were officially informed of this new development, indicates the seriousness with which Cooper approached his new venture. This time Cooper realised that he needed the support of influential community leaders. The NAB was told that the new competition was “ambitious” and that lucrative prizes had been offered for “the best gardens in the locations”.114
The Committee, still chaired by Brits and assisted by members of the NAB, was officially tasked with organising the new competition. The Committee was responsible for compiling the competition’s rules based on Cooper’s “principal points”. It was decided that gardeners could enter their gardens in two categories, namely a category for flower or ornamental gardens and a category for vegetable or market gardens. At face value, it appears as though this initiative succeeded in injecting renewed enthusiasm into Batho’s gardeners because they reportedly put in extra effort with their spring and early summer gardens. Cooper’s efforts certainly paid off in the long term – not only did it revive Batho’s gardening culture (at least among the middle-class) but it also boosted the gardening culture in neighbouring Bochabela.115 According to long-time Batho resident, Mogrey Mogaecho (born 1970), the legacy of Cooper’s garden competitions lasted well beyond his retirement in 1945 because competitions that were informally organised for residents of specific Batho streets were held annually until the 1980s. Mogaecho remembered that “back in the old days we would compete in the street whose garden was the best”.116 This phenomenon underscores the argument that garden competitions contributed significantly to the above-mentioned revival and, importantly, also to the longevity of Batho’s gardening culture beyond 1939.
During the late 1930s, the gardening culture in Batho and in Bochabela was about to receive an additional stimulus in the form of yet another garden competition; this time due to developments in Britain. Although the political undercurrents of the volatile 1930s dampened enthusiasm for the British monarchy117 among certain sectors of South African society, the coronation of George VI (1895–1952; Fig. 12) on 12 May 1937 did not fail to capture the imagination of most black and white South Africans.118
Bloemfontein was no exception and the predominantly English-speaking council rose to the occasion. The coronation celebrations organised for Bloemfontein also involved the location residents who, it was felt, had to be pragmatically reminded that they were still subjects of the Crown.119 Subsequently, the council decided to introduce a Coronation Cup for location residents whose stands were in “the best condition as regards cleanliness, upkeep of gardens and appearances and condition generally.”120 Council members were so keen on this initiative that they decided to present three Coronation Cups as floating trophies to be awarded annually.121 Not only did this gesture subtly boost pro-British sentiment in Batho, it also became another important stimulus for Batho’s stagnating gardening culture. In addition to the aggravating effect of the drought conditions mentioned earlier, the stagnation was worsened by the harmful impact of growing economic hardship and rising unemployment among location residents, particularly among the working-class. Added to these are the concomitant negative social trends such as gangsterism, prostitution, alcoholism, and juvenile delinquency which had beset Bloemfontein’s and, in fact, many of the Union’s locations during the 1930s.122
“Trees which they would look upon as their own”:123 Tree-planting competitions in Batho
In addition to garden competitions, tree-planting
competitions were also initiated to bolster Batho’s gardening culture. As early as 1921, the first competition was announced not long after Cooper’s predecessor, Mr G.P. Cook124 (dates unknown), urged Batho’s residents to “get their ground ready”125 for tree-planting. Councillor Urquhart was asked to adjudicate the competition and to award the prizes (sponsored by the NAC) to the trees that were in the best condition.126 Since then, trees were planted on Batho’s sidewalks, in open spaces, and in gardens on an unprecedented scale. However, by the mid-1930s, these efforts had lost steam. The reasons for the waning interest in tree-planting were not specifically mentioned but it is argued that a combination of drought conditions, apathy, and residents failing to see the need for tree-planting, caused the malaise. In an attempt to revive tree-planting, Councillor Gordon Smit suggested a tree-planting competition in August 1936 to encourage residents of Batho and Bochabela “to beautify their homes and the locations by the planting of trees in their gardens”.127 By then garden competitions with attractive prizes had proven to be an effective tool to inject renewed enthusiasm for gardening among location residents.
Councillor Smit, who desperately wanted location gardeners to share his passion for trees, argued that tree-planting competitions were the ideal mechanism to inspire local residents to take pride in “their” trees, in other words, “trees which they would look upon as their own”.128 Smit’s emphasis on location residents taking ownership of the trees that they had planted by considering them “as their own” is important for an understanding of Batho’s gardening culture in the context of the already-mentioned skewed land ownership policies of that time. On the one hand, Batho’s gardeners were encouraged to take ownership of the trees and plants in their gardens but, on the other hand, the soil in which they grew belonged to the municipality.129 The moderate African nationalist and author, R.V. Selope-Thema (1886–1955), illustrated this contradiction by means of an apt metaphor: “Natives in the Free State may be likened to the birds which are at the mercy of the people who own the trees on [sic] which they live. The birds may claim the trees to be their natural homes, but they have no security. Without their knowledge and consent the trees with their nests can be cut down and destroyed.”130 Because location residents were not considered permanent residents of Bloemfontein, they were allowed to own their trees but not the land on which the trees were planted.
Despite Batho’s strong gardening culture, the land ownership issue negatively affected the Batho gardeners’ sense of ownership of the trees in the location. Needless to say, the sense of ownership that Smit encouraged, was undermined by the absence of title deeds to the soil in which the trees grew. Could this be the actual reason why tree-planting efforts lost steam and why the residents’ enthusiasm for tree- planting initiatives waned during the 1930s? Because of a compromised sense of ownership, the trees in the locations were not always looked after. Cooper expressed his concern that many of the trees that had been planted in Batho and Bochabela perished because of neglect. He also criticised his allies, namely the blockmen who, he believed, had to take the lead and “interest themselves in this matter and encourage standholders to water these trees regularly to prevent them dying.”131 Cooper’s disappointment in them was not devoid of the patronage that so often characterised English-speaking municipal officials’ attitudes to location residents, including community leaders. He wryly reminded the blockmen that “tree planting was a great asset and improved the appearance of the Locations.”132 For Cooper, tree- planting was an important part of his ultimate vision of Batho as a garden location and he did not grow weary of reminding and encouraging Batho’s residents to persevere. Despite the indifference which reportedly persisted among some blockmen towards the late 1930s, Cooper could still report to the council that substantial numbers of trees were planted each year to achieve the ultimate goal, namely “to make the location resemble a park”.133
“How to make home life conducive to happiness and moral uplift”:134 Home improvement societies and clubs in Batho
During the 1920s and 1930s the social lives of many Batho residents were influenced by the activities of various civil societies, organisations, and social clubs. Most of them were introduced and launched
by “progressive” whites who were concerned about the welfare of location residents. Although most of these societies and clubs were not directly involved in gardening, some of them contributed to the development and strengthening of Batho’s gardening culture, if only indirectly. Societies and clubs that had been active in Batho included the Church Lads’ Brigade, the Independent Order of True Templars (IOTT),135 and the Bantu Young Men’s Christian Association (YMCA). The Pathfinders for black boys and the Wayfarers for black girls catered to the needs of the local school-going youth. These racially segregated organisations were associated with the whites-only Boy Scout and Girl Guide Movements that, among others, stressed the importance of getting to know indigenous plants among learners.136 Societies and clubs with religious or semi-religious undertones, such as the YMCA, were overseen by local churches and church leaders. Also noteworthy, is the Bloemfontein Bantu Social Institute (BSI)137 that had its own recreation facilities in the Sports section of Batho (Fig. 1). The BSI’s main objective was, to quote the patronising language of that time, “to help the Bantu to devote their leisure time to the best advantage in healthful recreation and good citizenship”.138 Needless to say, gardening and tree-planting were activities considered “healthful recreation”. The objectives of the other societies and clubs were similar to that of the BSI’s.
In a leading article, Umteteli wa Bantu praised Bloemfontein’s council for providing Batho with, among others, a YMCA building and a recreation hall. Significantly, the paper credited the council and societies such as the YMCA for “teaching the Natives how best to live, how to spend their leisure hours and how to make home life conducive to happiness and moral uplift.”139 It is noteworthy that the same patronising language used by white officials and by the white-owned English media, was also adopted by a newspaper with a black readership such as Umteteli wa Bantu. Teaching location residents how to spend their leisure hours and how to improve their home life often involved outdoor activities such as gardening.140 Women’s clubs, including the Bloemfontein Bantu Women’s Club, the Bantu Ladies Club, and the Bloemfontein African Home Improvement Society gave lectures on gardening-related topics such as vegetable gardening and the “food values of vegetables”.141 The Bloemfontein African Home Improvement Society’s secretary was none other than Batho’s garden expert, Ms Moikangoa. The Society’s stated objective was to teach black women “the art of making their homes pleasant and attractive”142 – a “noble” objective that included gardening.
The women’s clubs counted among their members some influential local white women, including N.J. (Nell) Marquard,143 L. (Louise) Marquard,144 M.H. Ensor, J. Lovius, and E. Earl. Needless to say, these women’s knowledge of a wide range of gardening-related subjects benefited the clubs’ black members.145 Most church denominations also had their own women’s guilds or Manyanos146 that involved their members in gardening activities, albeit very elementary. The women’s league of the African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church, which was led by the well-known Batho flower artist and gardener, Emily Mogaecho,147 (Fig. 13) was particularly active in this regard.148 With an interest in “Bantu social upliftment”,149 these women’s clubs considered it important that their members “learn something useful”150 such as gardening. The common view that gardening was not only “something useful” but also the “ideal form of recreation”,151 points to the fact that many of these societies and clubs intentionally or unintentionally promoted gardening as a moralising and civilising tool among people of colour. An aesthetic relationship to nature was considered a sign of moral progress;152 a sentiment that was seemingly shared by members of societies and clubs.153 Thus, it is argued that Batho’s civil societies and social clubs were influential to the extent that they had played an important role in the development of a gardening culture in Batho.
“Plant in rows 3 feet apart”:154 Gardening columns and articles
Finally, a discussion of Batho’s gardening culture will be incomplete without referring to the influence of the printed media of that time. Apart from the gardening columns which appeared in The Friend during the 1920s and 1930s,155 Batho’s gardeners also had access to the gardening columns and gardening information published in the widely read Umteteli wa Bantu.
During the 1920s, the paper published the popular Farm and Garden column written at the time by Mr S.G. Butler, who was principal of Tsolo School of Agriculture in the Eastern Cape.156 Butler’s columns covered a variety of horticultural and agricultural topics, including vegetable gardening and the ever- popular maize patch. A wide range of vegetables were discussed and it was advised that they had to be planted or sown in rows.157 Concerning the maize patch, readers were instructed to “plant in rows 3 feet apart with the seeds at least 12 inches apart in rows”.158 The general tendency of moving away from the traditional broadcasting of seed to the planting or sowing of seed in rows was reinforced among black gardeners through these and other gardening columns in publications. The influence of the renowned Tsolo School of Agriculture was not limited to students of this institution; instead, it reached far beyond, including Bloemfontein’s locations.
Apart from gardening columns, Umteteli wa Bantu also published a variety of gardening articles, many of which were written by people of colour. A range of topics was covered such as planting a backyard kitchen garden and reserving a separate flowerbed in the front garden for growing flowers which were meant for cutting. The gardening articles emphasised a formal garden layout by advising gardeners to plant seed in rows and at equal intervals in rectangular or square beds.159 Considering the extent of Umteteli wa Bantu’s readership, it is argued that the gardening columns and articles contributed to the development of a gardening culture in the locations, including in Batho where the paper was widely read.160 Accordingly, it is debated that the gardening columns and articles also served as barometers of the general state of black people’s gardening culture, considering the type of information published. Could this be an indication of the level of sophistication that was achieved in some black gardening circles during that time? Articles such as “Hints on cutting flowers”161 and “How to treat flowers”162 were not uncommon. Most insightful is a statement made by E.W. Msimang, one of Umteteli wa Bantu’s revered garden writers, in a gardening article published in 1939: “the African woman has reached a stage when she realises the part played by the flower garden in improving the aspect of her premises.”163
CONCLUSION
The embryonic gardening culture that was transferred from Waaihoek to Batho when Bloemfontein’s black and coloured residents were relocated there, provided the impetus for a much stronger gardening culture to emerge and further develop in the new location. Batho was conceived and laid out as a model location with an exemplary layout, better houses, and individual stands big enough for the laying out of gardens. Owing to the many ornamental and vegetable gardens that were subsequently laid out and the copious numbers of trees that were planted in Batho, it soon developed into a garden location. The garden location concept was popularised by
the Garden City Movement and other British town planning ideals that strongly influenced location planning in South Africa during the 1920s and 1930s. Because Bloemfontein was mainly an English- speaking city with a predominantly English-speaking municipality and council, English gardening culture and garden style strongly influenced Batho’s gardens and gardening culture.
During the 1920s and 1930s Batho’s gardening culture steadily developed and later flourished as a result of both the Batho residents’ own attempts to lay out gardens and the initiatives taken by influential white municipal officials and other individuals. The 1920s, which is considered the first stage in developing Batho’s gardening culture, was typified by a healthy competition spirit among residents, especially among Batho’s middle-class as personified by people such as Mapikela and Moikangoa. Residents were eager to lay out attractive gardens that not only complemented their new houses but also compared favourably with the gardens of other location residents. Reportedly, there was a general feeling of “responsibility” for Batho’s beautification among residents. During the second stage in developing Batho’s gardening culture, that is, during the late 1920s to the late 1930s, the municipality’s efforts and initiatives to revive and sustain Batho’s stagnating gardening culture predominated. These efforts and initiatives included garden and tree-planting competitions; the founding of a Garden Committee; the allocation of allotment gardens; the establishment of a fresh- produce market; and the use of societies and clubs as vehicles to promote gardening and a gardening culture in Batho.
It is critical that the municipality’s efforts to develop a gardening culture in Batho should be viewed in the context of the Union government’s segregationist ideology and policies of the 1920s and 1930s. Although the municipality’s initiatives and efforts were seemingly well-intended, they were undermined by suspected ulterior motives such as the use of the “sanitation syndrome” as an excuse to create a “sanitary” and “healthy” location to justify territorial segregation. Added to these, were the municipal officials’ fears that Batho’s residents would swamp the city’s whites-only parks and squares; the use of gardening and a gardening culture as tools to depoliticise Batho’s residents and to focus their attention on a “noble” and “worthy” pastime such as gardening; and some white councillors’ personal prestige and egotism. Therefore, the question is raised as to whose interests were best served by the gardening culture initiatives and who benefited most from these. It is argued that the municipality’s primary motivation to develop a gardening culture in Batho was to justify territorial segregation and to soften its effects by reasoning that an exemplary model location was provided for Bloemfontein’s people of colour.
Finally, it is argued that the municipality’s efforts to develop a gardening culture in Batho were fairly “successful”, provided that they are viewed at face value and within the context of the cultural- historical timeframe in question, that is, from 1918 to 1939. The “success” that was achieved should be attributed not only to efforts made by Cooper and his colleagues but also to the support of the NAB members, blockmen, and location residents. During the 1920s and 1930s, Batho was indeed a model location in comparison with other locations in the Union but not in comparison with Bloemfontein’s white areas. Batho was considered a national example and it became a blueprint for other municipalities
in location planning, layout, and, importantly, how to create an aesthetically pleasing environment. Ultimately, this was achieved by means of laying out gardens and the development of a gardening culture. Consequently, Batho became known for its English- style ornamental gardens with clipped hedges and topiary, as well as the trees planted on sidewalks and in gardens. However, the municipality’s “success” must also be measured against the sustainability of its initiatives, specifically towards the end of the 1930s. In addition to the already-mentioned detrimental factors, others such as periodic droughts; inadequate water supply; general apathy among blockmen and residents; discriminatory segregation policies; and the prohibition of land ownership for people of colour also undermined the municipality’s efforts to develop and sustain a gardening culture in Batho. When the War broke out, a combination of all these factors and the crippling socio-economic conditions in Batho ended its gardening “golden age” but, ultimately, its gardening culture endured beyond 1939.
SOURCES
I Archival Sources
FREE STATE PROVINCIAL ARCHIVES (FSPA), BLOEMFONTEIN
UNPUBLISHED MATERIAL
Estate Files (MHG):
MHG 38829, Estate of the late John Richard Cooper: Death notice.
Municipality of Bloemfontein (MBL):
Correspondence
MBL 1/2/4/1/5, Letter from G.P. Cook, Superintendent of Locations, to G. Golds Esq., Acting Town Clerk, 20.9.1921.
MBL 1/2/4/1/8, Letter from J.P. Logan, Town Clerk, to Dr M.J. Steyn, His Worship the Mayor, 14.9.1925.
Mayor’s Minutes
MBL 3/1/19, Mayor’s minute 1921–1922. MBL 3/1/19, Mayor’s minute 1922–1923. MBL 3/1/19, Mayor’s minute 1924–1925. MBL 3/1/19, Mayor’s minute 1926–1927.
Native Advisory Board, Native Affairs
Committee and Town Council: Minutes
MBL 1/1/1/34, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Town Council, 28.8.1936.
MBL 1/2/4/1/3, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Affairs Committee, 17.6.1918.
MBL 1/2/4/1/5, Minutes of meeting of Native Affairs Committee, 24.10.1921.
MBL 1/2/4/1/8, Minutes of special meeting of Native Affairs Committee, 9.9.1925.
MBL 1/2/4/1/9, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 29.1.1926.
MBL 1/2/4/1/12, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 15.2.1927.
MBL 1/2/4/1/13, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Affairs Committee, 17.8.1927.
MBL 1/2/4/1/14, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Affairs Committee, 15.3.1928.
MBL 1/2/4/1/15, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 30.10.1928.
MBL 1/2/4/1/16, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 24.7.1929.
MBL 1/2/4/1/17, Minutes of joint meeting of Native Affairs Committee and Native Advisory Board, 13.8.1929.
MBL 1/2/4/1/17, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 11.9.1929.
MBL 1/2/4/1/18, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Affairs Committee, 9.10.1930.
MBL 1/2/4/1/20, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 24.11.1931.
MBL 1/2/4/1/21, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 23.6.1932.
MBL 1/2/4/1/23, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 5.12.1933.
MBL 1/2/4/1/25, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 6.12.1934.
MBL 1/2/4/1/28, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 3.3.1937, 10.5.1937.
MBL 1/2/4/1/29, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 2.9.1937.
MBL 1/2/4/1/32, Minutes of ordinary meeting of Native Advisory Board, 8.5.1939.
Regulations
MBL 1/2/4/1/6, Location Regulations 1924.
Reports
MBL 1/2/4/1/8, Report of Superintendent of Locations, June & July 1925, 1.8.1925.
MBL 1/2/4/1/9, Report of Superintendent of Locations, January 1926, 2.2.1926.
MBL 1/2/4/1/18, Monthly report of Native Administration Department for September 1930, s.a.
MBL 1/2/4/1/21, Annual report of Native Administration Department 1931–1932, 1.5.1932.
MBL 1/2/4/1/27, Report of Manager of Native Administration Department, October 1936: Annexure D, 7.11.1936.
MBL 1/2/4/1/28, Report of Manager of Native Administration Department, January 1937, 12.2.1937.
MBL 1/2/4/1/32, Report of Manager of Native Administration Department, September 1939: Annexures D, E & F, s.a.
UNIVERSITY OF THE WITWATERSRAND, HISTORICAL PAPERS (HP), JOHANNESBURG
UNPUBLISHED MATERIAL
Municipality of Bloemfontein:
Reports
AD 1765, Yearly report on locations 1925–1926.
II Official Publications
STATUTES AND LEGISLATION
Statutes of the Union of South Africa 1923 with tables of contents (alphabetical and chronological) and tables of laws, etc., repealed and amended by these statutes: Natives (Urban Areas) Act (no. 21 of 1923). Cape Town, 1923.
III Newspapers
The Friend, 6.1.1919, 28.7.1921, 15.2.1922, 11.5.1923,
27.11.1923, 10.6.1927, 10.7.1931, 12.9.1932,
31.8.1936, 31.12.1936, 13.5.1937.
Umteteli wa Bantu, 18.9.1920, 5.11.1921, 24.5.1924,
15.11.1924, 20.12.1924, 10.7.1926, 16.7.1927,
4.10.1930, 9.1.1932, 26.11.1932, 25.5.1935,
15.6.1935, 1.2.1936, 22.2.1936, 22.5.1937,
8.10.1938, 29.10.1938, 12.11.1938, 8.7.1939,
26.9.1939.
IV Articles in Newspapers
BUTLER, S.G. Farm and Garden: December practice, Umteteli wa Bantu, 27.11.1926, p. 4.
BUTLER, S.G. Farm and Garden: January practice, Umteteli wa Bantu, 25.12.1926, pp. 3–4.
BUTLER, S.G. Farm and Garden: February practice, Umteteli wa Bantu, 19.2.1927, p. 4.
COPISO, G.G. Vegetable gardening, Umteteli wa Bantu, 29.10.1938, p. 10.
MSIMANG, E.W. Flowers in winter and spring: Some timely hints, Umteteli wa Bantu, 25.3.1939, p. 7.
MSIMANG, H.S. Native locations, Umteteli wa Bantu, 1.10.1921, p. 2.
PLAATJE, H.G. Natives in urban areas: The brighter side for the African, Umteteli wa Bantu, 13.1.1934, p. 4.
PLAATJE, S.T. The Native mind, The Friend, 7.12.1927,p 5.
SOLOMON, E.J. Bloemfontein Native Location, Umteteli wa Bantu, 19.8.1922, p. 3.
SELOPE-THEMA, R.V. Homeless wanderers, Umteteli wa Bantu, 22.10.1927, p. 3.
SELOPE-THEMA, R.V. Urban natives’ title to land, Umteteli wa Bantu, 24.2.1923, p. 4.
V Books
DAWSON, W.H. South Africa: People, places, and problems. London, 1925.
HOWARD, E. Garden cities of to-morrow. Eastbourne, 1985.
PLAATJE, S.T. Native life in South Africa, before and since the European war and the Boer rebellion. New York, 1969.
ROGERS, H. Native administration in the Union of South Africa being a brief survey of the organisation, functions and activities of the Department of Native Affairs of the Union of South Africa. Johannesburg, 1933.
SCHOEMAN, K. Bloemfontein: Die ontstaan van ’n stad, 1846–1946. Cape Town, 1980.
TAYLOR, L. A taste for gardening: Classed and gendered practices. Aldershot, 2008.
VI Chapters in Books
CONAN, M. The hortillonnages: Reflections on a vanishing gardeners’ culture. In: J.D. Hunt & J. Wolschke-Bulmahn (Eds), The vernacular garden (Washington, D.C., 1993), pp. 19–46.
DARLEY, G. The English cottage garden. In: M. Mosser & G. Teyssot (Eds), The history of garden design: The Western tradition from the Renaissance to the present day (London, 1991), pp. 424–426.
KRIGE, D.S. Bloemfontein. In: A. Lemon (Ed.), Homes apart: South Africa’s segregated cities (Cape Town, 1991), pp. 104–119.
LEWIS, P. The making of vernacular taste: The case of Sunset and Southern Living. In: J.D. Hunt & J. Wolschke-Bulmahn (Eds), The vernacular garden (Washington, D.C., 1993), pp. 107–136.
RICH, P. The quest for Englishness. In: G. Marsden (Ed.), Victorian values: Personalities and perspectives in nineteenth century society (Burnt Mill, 1990), pp. 211–225.
WEPENER, F.J. Psychological approach. In: P.H. Connell et al., Native housing: A collective thesis (Johannesburg, 1939), pp. 50–85.
VII Articles
ANON. Real South Africans, Reality 13(3), May 1981, pp2–3.
ANON. Tsolo – where the Bantu farmers of the future are trained, Bantu 4, April 1957, pp. 23–26.
BALFOUR, R.J. Gardening in ‘Other Countries’: Schoeman, Coetzee, Conrad, Alternation 4(2), January 1997, pp. 123–135.
COETZER, N. Langa township in the 1920s – an (extra) ordinary garden suburb, South African Journal of Art History 24(1), 2009, pp. 1–19.
CONSTANTINE, S. Amateur gardening and popular recreation in 19th and 20th centuries, Journal of Social History 14(3), Spring 1981, pp. 387–406.
COOPER, J.R. The Municipality of Bloemfontein: Native housing and accommodation, South African Architectural Record 28(6), June 1943, pp. 119–123.
CHRISTOPHER, A.J. From Flint to Soweto: Reflections on the colonial origins of the apartheid city, Area 15(2), 1983, pp. 145–149.
DU BRUYN, D. British influence on houses, gardens, and the gardening culture in Waaihoek (Mangaung) from the late 1800s to 1917, South African Journal of Cultural History 35(2), December 2021, pp. 92–122.
DU BRUYN, D. ‘No liquor for me, I only take tea!’: The story of the Independent Order of True Templars foundation stone in the Batho exhibition, Culna 71, November 2016, pp. 10–11.
DU BRUYN, D. The story of a township garden: Mogrey’s family re-collections, Culna 68, November 2013, pp. 34–36.
DU BRUYN, D. ‘Township Topiary’: The history of the English-style gardens of Batho, Mangaung (1846- 1948), Navorsinge van die Nasionale Museum, Bloemfontein 27(3), December 2011, pp. 37–82.
DU BRUYN, D. & M. OELOFSE, “The idea of beautifying the surroundings”: Bloemfontein’s (Mangaung) Batho location a “garden location”? (c. 1918–1939), New Contree 84, July 2020, pp. 30–56.
GINSBURG, R. “Now I stay in a house”: Renovating the matchbox in apartheid-era Soweto, African Studies 55(2), 1996, pp. 127–139.
HOME, R.K. Town planning and garden cities in the British colonial empire 1910–1940, Planning Perspectives 5(1), 1990, pp. 23–37.
KIMBER, C.T. Gardens and dwelling: People in vernacular gardens, Geographical Review 94(3), July 2004, pp. 263–283.
KUMAR, K. Englishness, Britishness and empire in the politics of English nationhood, British Politics 11(3), 2016, pp. 354–360.
LE ROUX, C. J.R. Cooper as Township Manager of Mangaung at Bloemfontein, 1923–1945, Navorsinge van die Nasionale Museum, Bloemfontein 26(1), December 2010, pp.1–44.
LE ROUX, C. Openbare gesondheidsorg in die swart woonbuurte van Bloemfontein, 1900–1945, Acta Academica 29(2), August 1997, pp. 63–81.
LE ROUX, C. The performance of tsotsi gangs and causes leading to their formation in Mangaung, Bloemfontein, 1945–1976, Journal for Contemporary History 29(2), September 2004, pp. 43–59.
LE ROUX, S. & G. BREEDLOVE, Die tuin wat Pierneef gemaak het, South African Journal of Cultural History 18(1), June 2004, pp. 10–33.
MABIN, A. Origins of segregatory town planning in South Africa, c. 1900–1940, Planning History 13(3), 1991, pp. 8–16.
MALAN, S.F. Die Britse besetting van Bloemfontein, 13 Maart 1900, Historia 20(1), May 1975, pp. 34–43.
MAYLAM, P. Explaining the apartheid city: 20 years of South African urban historiography, Journal of Southern African Studies 21(1), March 1995, pp. 19–38.
MAYLAM, P. The rise and decline of urban apartheid in South Africa, African Affairs 89(354), January 1990, pp.57–84.
MURRAY, S.-A. The idea of gardening: Plants, bewilderment, and indigenous identity in South Africa, English in Africa 33(2), October 2006, pp. 45–65.
NEL, P.G. et al. Kultuurgeskiedenis as wetenskap, Handhaaf 19(2), November 1981, pp. 7–11.
PROCTOR, T.M. “A separate path”: Scouting and Guiding in interwar South Africa, Comparative Studies in Society and History 42(3), July 2000, pp. 605–617.
SOMERVILLE, T.S. Our first garden city, The Outspan 2(38), 18.11.1927, p. 43.
STRAUSS, D. Skakeringe van die begrip kultuur – in historiese en sistematiese perspektief, Journal of Humanities 51(4), December 2011, pp. 645–665.
SWANSON, M.W. The sanitation syndrome: Bubonic plague and urban native policy in the Cape Colony, 1900–1909, Journal of African History XVIII(3), 1977, pp. 387–410.
VAN VOLLENHOVEN, A.C. ’n Ondersoek na die voetpaadjies in die tuin van die Melrose- huismuseum, Pretoria, South African Journal of Cultural History 33(2), December 2019, pp. 99–120.
WOLSCHKE-BULMAHN, J. Ethics and morality: Questions in the history of garden and landscape design: A preliminary essay, Journal of Garden History 14(3), 1994, pp. 140–146.
VIII Dissertations
CALDERWOOD, D.M. Native housing in South Africa. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of the Witwatersrand, 1953.
DU BRUYN, D. Gardens, gardening culture and the development of a semi-vernacular garden style in Batho, Mangaung, 1918–1939: A historical perspective. Unpublished Ph.D. thesis, University of the Free State, 2018.
FAGAN, G.E. An introduction to the man-made landscape at the Cape from the 17th to the 19th centuries (vols. 1 & 2). Unpublished D.Phil. thesis, University of Cape Town, 1994.
KRIGE, D.S. Afsonderlike ontwikkeling as ruimtelike beplanningstrategie: ’n Toepassing op die Bloemfontein – Botshabelo – Thaba Nchu-streek. Unpublished D.Phil. thesis, University of the Orange Free State, 1988.
IX Reports
SENEKAL, W.F.S. Gedifferensieerde woonbuurtvorming binne die Munisipaliteit van Bloemfontein: ’n Faktorekologiese toepassingstudie, Research report 2: Part 1, ISEN, University of the Orange Free State, 1977.
X Interviews
MAHABANE, S.M. Batho, 7 & 20.11.2014.
MARUMO, M.M. Batho, 28.10.2014. MOGAECHO, M. Batho, 9.4.2013. PHAKOE, M. Batho, 25.11.2014.
Comments are closed.