In 2002, the family bought a smallholding near Napier in the Western Cape of South Africa. Since 2003, when I became the caretaker of the farm, I, with help of my team, turned Tuinplaas into our own personal paradise. The river beds along the perennial river have been cleared and more than 50 trees have been planted. The old farm house has been restored to its former glory and a guest accomodation has been created.
There is a small guest house located in the towering Bluegum forest in the upper part of the garden. It is a one room, self-catering unit, with an en-suite bathroom. It can accommodate 2 to 4 people.
For more information about price and availability, please contact us.
In February, an enormous bluegum fell on the barn at, damaging the roof beyond repair. If ever we still wanted to use it, it was clear it needed a new roof... and new walls and new doors and new windows. As of 2023, the barn has been completely reconstructed and open for business.
The 7 Owls Barn is a multipurpose venue where one can rent out the space for festive events. It currently acts as a popup restaurant and gallery. For more information, please visit the contact page.
During reconstruction we came upon a nest of 7 barn owl babies. We then reorganized the nest in a way so that the parents could still care for them until they were old enough to leave the nest, whilst we could go on working. All 7 eventually flew out and in honour of the little owlkies, the barn is called The Seven Owls. You can see the contruction process in the gallery below.
Since there was a digger loader on the farm that helped remove the accumulated humus and soil behind the barn, we decided to make even better use of it. Now we also have a small damn that can help us with gravity fed irrigation of the 40 trees that were planted in the lower fields.
