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Garden Genius-the gateway to completeness and self -fulfillment

 

By Robert Zvidza

Garden Genius Private Limited is a professional garden designing and landscaping company based in Harare. They have become a household name in Zimbabwe through their superb garden designs.

 

Homes & Styles Magazine recently caught up with Helena Du Coudray, the Managing Director and owner of Garden Genius, to talk about her company and her passion for creating beautiful outdoor living spaces.

 

This is her story.

 

“I studied landscaping at a college in Cape Town when I finished high school but l found myself on a different career path of Public Relations. I had a very long career in Public Relations where I worked for different big companies in the country. I then got tired of wearing high-heeled shoes and stockings and decided to start Garden Genius.

 

“We started from humble beginnings in 1997. At that time there was only one company in the country that did landscaping owned by the well-known landscaper Errol Tarr. We have progressed since then to where we are.

 

“We pride ourselves in having survived a  very bumpy economic situation in 2008 and have since grown to become a household brand in Zimbabwe. Experience counts,” she says.

 

Over the years Garden Genius has created thousands of gardens for residential homes, corporates, mines, and retail outlets around the country and has now purchased modern 3D equipment and software to enhance their garden designs.

 

“With this 3D equipment we are able to design a garden virtually and a client has the chance to see exactly how their garden will look and we can change virtually anything the client wants. The gardens usually turn out exactly the same or even better than the drawings,” said Helena.

 

But what inspires her? “I like clean homes, I don’t like clutter and I work with different colours and themes. These have to match. I like modern straight lines and energy has to flow. One has to feel good inside.

 

“Over the years of landscaping in Harare, I have become aware of the climate. The weather has become erratic and it’s very difficult to find the balance between plants that prefer dry conditions and water-loving plants so we’re very careful in choosing which plants to use. We have to respect the water situation and the environment so we’ve resolved to use a lot of stones and succulents in our designs.  

 

“We use suitable plants which last for a longer period of time. We don’t use annuals (plants that quickly bloom and fade away) rather we go for perennials (which bloom throughout the year) as well as succulents which provide contrasting colours - white against green, red against yellow and we also balance leaf textures and shapes.”

 

Garden Genius, according to Helena, also makes use of Japanese plants that are evergreen perennials and often have an overall harmonious shape with stylish foliage or flowers. They are slow growers and tend to have a peaceful presence.

 

To make their work easier Garden Genius has established a nursery with a vast selection of healthy and established landscaping plants.

 

“This makes our work much easier as we don’t have to run around looking for plants for our clients. We have a large amount of stock on hand and we are very fast. We take a maximum of three weeks to design and establish a normal garden.

 

Asked about her future plans with Garden Genius, Helena says they are satisfied with the level they’re at now.

 

“We are happy where we are, but I would want to get more into designing. I feel I am powerful with design. When I walk onto a site I can see what needs to be done at once in seconds, that’s my strength. I always make site visits to have a feel of the ground, soil texture, and availability of water.”

 

She has a few tips for those aspiring to have beautiful gardens.

 

“When you want to start a garden, it is good to have a plan first and be able to stick to it. You execute it bit by bit as and when you can afford it. At Garden Genius we put great emphasis on the preparation of the ground before planting by feeding the soil using natural decomposed manure.

 

 

“The colour of your garden wall is also extremely important in bringing out your garden. I like to use dark khaki grey. Even a Dura wall can be painted using the same colour,” she says.

 

So if you want a beautiful garden contact Garden Genius, you won’t be disappointed.

 

An exploration of antiques through the eyes of Birch Williams

 

By Robert Zvidza

 

When settlers came to Zimbabwe between 1890-1920, they brought with them a lot of stuff, furniture, and some treasured ornaments. These items came from all over Europe on wagons and they were their most treasured furniture and always desirable.

 

As years passed, these pieces of furniture were substituted as people became dependent upon technology and the need for constant updates. The desire for new trends has ultimately led to a depreciation in the need for older objects, sometimes called antiques.

 

One reason for such a decline is that the public, particularly younger generations, have forgotten what can make these vintage pieces unique and more valuable than modern technology, or other trendy items.

 

This is why antique collectors have become vital in preserving this history as well as  serving as both educators and providers of a wide variety of antiques and treasured items.

 

In Zimbabwe, Birch Williams is passionate about preserving antiques and has been in the business for over 30 years.

 

Homes & Styles Magazine took time to visit him at his showrooms at Doon Estate in Msasa, Harare, for an interview where he poured out his heart on his passion, which he has also merged with his home design and arrangement talent.

 

“My obsession with antiques and interior design and arrangement started at a very young age when I used to watch Roger Hamilton King doing the display in his shop at Fife Avenue Mall. I was around 10 or 11 years at that time. At 13, I would bunk school to attend antique sales.

 

“My interest in design in general is, I believe, an inherent thing. I have never done any course or studies and yet I know naturally how things should be arranged,” he said in an interview.

 

A random saunter in his showrooms will show a variety of antique collections and other treasured ornaments from cupboards, tables, and chairs, silverware, artwork, wall hangings, chandeliers, and vases among others.

 

He has grouped his collections in four showrooms which represent different styles. African Baroque is largely filled with Victorian items from Europe, Halfway House is more African in style, Orient Interiors has Asian art and pieces and  Acacia Trading is a mixture of artifacts put together in a more contemporary way.

 

In Acacia Trading, the touch of Birch’s hand in arranging and designing can be seen as the showroom already exudes the beauty of antiques when properly arranged.

 

Besides collecting and selling to customers who still see value in antiques, Birch Williams has used his talent to help customers that buy his collection in designing their homes leaving them with a tasteful and stylish look.

 

Antiques often display fine craftsmanship that is harder to come by today and feature intricate wood carving, marquetry, or decorative flourishes that one will not find in run-of-the-mill modern-day furniture.

 

“Antiques are a drying resource and you can’t get more. Until recently, there was really good craftsman in the world but we are getting into a time where there is no real craftsmanship left, everything is now being mass-produced and disposable. So anybody in the future as we go along that wants really good quality will have to buy antique things because that will be the only good things that are left.

 

“Learning an interest in old things that were beautifully made and not mass manufactured is rewarding and fulfilling especially in a world that is so automated and devoid of most emotion. Antiques carry with them history and life something a newly made item will never do. Things are not likely to be made with such style and skill again,” he says.

 

He also adds that as people are going for smaller and smaller places and going for disposable decor, they literally leave everything behind when they shift and start over again. This is environmentally unfriendly.

 

“Imagine how the world will be in the next 20 or 30 years to come with piles and piles of unwanted furniture.”

 

In his many years in dealing in antiques, Williams has hosted a number of famous people at his shop but the most revered include the late Golden Globes Award winner Dana Wynter, who bought a few pieces from his shop as well as actress Reese Witherspoon who used to find comfort in viewing antiques at his shop during her visit to Zimbabwe.

 

He has also used his interior design skills to makeover Rhodes Hotel in Nyanga in a bid to try and retain its original style.

 

If you are a serious antique enthusiast, then you can not look beyond Birch Williams shops.

Doon Estate is located at Number 1, Harrow Road, Msasa, Harare. For more on Antique Shops Call Patricia  on 0772682814

 

Bangiza a traditional mbira song rehearsal by Robert Simbarashe Zvidza, Hebron Muronzi Chikanga, Chitova, Chihera and Dziva

New breed of car thieves on the prawl

 

By Robert Zvidza

 

One evening Obey Marufu (36) was driving a Toyota Quantum vehicle in Harare Central Business District along Nelson Mandela Avenue.

 

At Corner Park Street and Nelson Mandela, he was enticed by trendy sports shoes which were being sold by vendors on the pavement opposite a service station and he stopped to buy himself a pair. He parked his vehicle, switched off the engine, closed the doors of the motor vehicle, and left the ignition keys on the port, after all this transaction would not take time.

 

Unknown to Marufu, someone was watching him closely and as soon as he left to engage the shoe vendors, the person took advantage of the keys in the ignition, opened the door of the motor vehicle, and drove off at high speed.

 

Marufu was alerted by the skidding tyres of the vehicle and upon checking, he saw the vehicle he had parked being driven away at high speed.

 

He tried to give chase but the accused person had disappeared into heavy traffic and away he went.

 

Inside the vehicle, Marufu had left his smartphone with a netone line. He then made a report at ZRP Harare Central.

 

Marufu is among many complainants who have lost their vehicles in that manner after leaving their vehicles unattended with keys on the ignition.

 

These cases have been on the increase of late and Detectives have been grappling with such matters and have unearthed a new trend that has hit the country.

 

Statistics availed to this publication indicate that in March alone, the Criminal Investigations Department (CID) Vehicle Theft Squad had received 24  such cases and 14 of robbery of motor vehicles. 

 

On most occasions, vehicles could be recovered and dumped in different locations without batteries or some small parts but these criminals seem to have brought a South African flare into their thiving.

 

Once a vehicle is stolen in South Africa, chances of it being recovered are next to non as thieves quickly take it to a garage in homes and strip it for parts or change its appearance in a matter of hours by respraying it and changing plates among other disguising methods.

 

“We have discovered that these criminals now take these vehicles to remote areas where they then strip the vehicle of parts and resale the parts to second-hand spare parts dealers,” said the Officer-In-Charge CID Vehicle Theft Squad, Detective Chief Inspector Michael Chiodza in an interview recently.

 

As Detectives were working on the case of a stolen Toyota Quantum, investigations led to the arrest of Lameck Phiri of Mbare in Harare and recovered the smartphone which was stolen together with the car. The phone had been placed for sale.

 

This then unearthed a car stealing syndicate that had been on a rampage in the recent past their way of operating. Lameck led the detectives to his accomplice  in Zin’anga Village, Seke in Chitungwiza at Chinamasa Homestead where they arrested last Chinamasa (35) who worked in Cahoots with Lameck and there the Toyota Quantum was recovered.

 

However, the accused had already stripped the motor vehicle of its gearbox, engine, starter motor, and battery and had already sold the parts in Msasa and Gazaland in Highfields. These were recovered by the detectives during investigations. The battery was recovered at Lameck’s place of residence.

 

The number plates of the vehicle were also dumped in a maize field in Sunningdale and Lameck led the detectives to their recovery.

 

“We further recovered four other vehicles that were stolen by the same accused persons in the same manner and after stealing they would change the identity of the car by replacing the doors with doors of a different colour, they also tempered with the fenders and the vehicle number plates as well as the chassis number and the engine number under the bonnet.

 

“Even if they drove the car around, the owners would hardly identify it because it would have been changed its identity,” said Det C/Insp Chiodza.

 

But in all the cases that we have unearthed, they use the same method of taking advantage of those that leave keys on the ignition.

 

One man had his car stolen in the Central Business District in January in the morning after he left his Toyota Runex unattended with keys on the ignition as he rushed into Adams clothing shop only to be told by a security guard that there was someone who had driven his motor vehicle away.

 

Similarly, Owen Muleya parked his vehicle at a restaurant in the Central Business District and spent 30 minutes eating. As he was about to go, he unlocked his vehicle and started the engine, however, he discovered that he had forgotten dog food in the restaurant and left the car running with the keys on the ignition. He returned only to see his motor vehicle missing.

 

These vehicles have since been recovered by police by the accused persons who were recently arrested.

 

“We have always spread the word to the people not to leave car keys on the ignition when disembarking. They should make sure they lock the doors and carry their keys with them,said Det C/Insp Chiodza.

 

Despite the arrest of the duo, detectives still suspect they could be more of these thieves still roaming the streets freely and calling upon members of the public to supply information if there are any people whom they suspect.

 

“As CID, we are seized with these cases and we are calling upon the members of the public to report any sinister activities which they suspect to be criminal to us, especially those that deal in motor vehicles.

 

“These people live among us and do their deals within homes so it is only the members of the public who can assist us.”

 

He further warned people of those criminals who also rob people and steal motor vehicles as the trend though lower in numbers is also prevalent.

 

“Be vigilant when driving and know your surroundings. Once you suspect that someone is following you, drive straight to a police station,”he said.