And the waterflows again ...
September 20, 2005
By Lucille Davie
THE network of ponds and waterways on the western koppie of The Wilds is again gushing with tumbling water, for the first time in seven years.
The network of waterworks and ponds are flowing again
The revival of The Wilds in Houghton has been spearheaded by local resident TJ de Klerk in a public-private partnership with Johannesburg City Parks. For the past six months De Klerk has pushed to get the water flowing again.
The ponds and waterways were built in the early 1950s, but by the late 1990s the system had ground to a halt. Enos Mhlanga, the chief horticulturist of The Wilds, who has worked in the garden for the past 16 years, says the pump worked intermittently since the 1970s, until it finally stopped in 1998.
De Klerk says it was a slow, step-by-step process. At first the pump and motor had to be removed and refurbished by City Parks. Once they were repositioned, City Power had to be called in to install a three-phase power system in the pump house.
After another delay to install a wall switch to switch on the power, it looked like the time had come to switch on the system.
There were still problems, however. The switch was flicked, the pump started working - but the pump house flooded because the storm water drainpipe was blocked.
This was cleared by a private company, Rota Rooter, which donated its fee of R3 000.
Then came the great switch on, on Friday, 16 September. The water was pumped from the bottom pond, up the hill, filling the network of ponds.
The pump was then switched off, and the pond at the bottom was refilled with tap water. It was switched on again, and the water splashed happily through the network of ponds and waterways, sending spray on to the surrounding gardens.
"Oh, it's wonderful, wonderful," said Mhlanga. "Great - thanks to TJ."
De Klerk is optimistic that, with the water flowing again, there will be more birds in the park. "I noticed birds playing in the spray a few days ago," he says.
He plans to look into putting fish in one of the ponds.
The plant house at the top of the western koppie has been given a new lease of life with the replacement of the pump. Several dozen goldfish are swimming contentedly around the pond. The waterways in the small area outside the plant house, newly waterproofed by City Parks, are also flowing again.
Other contributions
City Parks has also refurbished the toilets alongside the kiosk in Houghton Drive, and supplied tables and benches for picnickers.
The private sector has come to the party with many other small efforts. In early May sundial maker Malcolm Barnfield and stonemason Dave Baguley installed a replacement stone sundial at the top north-west corner of The Wilds. The men also supplied pointers indicating the way to the sundial.
Karli Stamhuis designed and made 25 attractive mosaic trail markers, with funds donated by neighbouring Roedean School.
De Klerk contacted the Dendrological Society, and Kobus Kok from the society spent time identifying the trees. About 100 trees have been given labels.
Concrete dustbins for the bottom ponds and around the kiosk were donated by Clear Channel Communications.
Jesse Mission has restored the drinking fountains and fixed holes in the fences.
St John's College has allowed weekend walkers to park their cars securely on the corner of St Patrick Road and Houghton Drive. Also making the garden safer, 24/7 Security Services provides security and has donated batons and handcuffs for wardens.
St John's is considering installing bat and owl boxes on the eastern koppie. Owl boxes are in place at the school, and having them at neighbouring The Wilds might encourage more owls into the area.
De Klerk sponsored a new battery for the tractor that is used to clear away cut branches. In all, he estimates the private sector contribution to the rejuvenation of The Wilds comes to more than R30 000.
In addition, he has contacted the Johannesburg Roads Agency, and work on painting the bridge joining the west and east of the garden has begun.
Mark Thomas from the White Horse Scout Troop in Randpark Ridge is planning to bring up to 18 scouts along in October to track, by means of a GPS, a trail following particular trees. They will also repair a stone pathway, ponds and waterways on the eastern koppie.
The next major project, says De Klerk, is to get the borehole pump on the eastern koppie restored.
"This borehole supplies water to both the eastern and western koppies."
Once this is restored, the sprinkler system can be turned on again, supplying precious water to the gardens, which are dry and dead in many places.
Forty acres
The Wilds consists of 40 acres of indigenous parkland laid out between 1924 and 1938. It has seen its fortunes dip in the past decade as people have avoided its beautifully laid stone paths, immaculate lawns and delightful ponds, fearful of muggings.
De Klerk, who has been walking his dogs in the park for 17 years, started offering guided walks in March this year. Over the past two months he has taken 1 000 people on walks through this forgotten treasure, many of those people exploring the garden again for the first time in 20 years.
"They came from all over," he says. "Many knew The Wilds well, but had not been back for 15 or 20 years. Others had not even known the park existed. A lot of them have become regulars, returning again and again."
De Klerk has produced a trail route brochure, which he gives out to walkers.
Flagship park
Jenny Moodley, the media manager at Johannesburg City Parks, says that despite being one of the city's flagship parks, The Wilds is still under-utilised.
This means that a careful balance has to be maintained between expenditure and usage, as City Parks has 1 000 parks to take care of.
"Half-a-million rand is spent on The Wilds every year, excluding water and electricity," she says, adding that City Parks is aware of the broken borehole and has it on the agenda of items needing restoration.
Moodley says City Parks is looking for sponsors to help beautify the city's parks in the build-up to the 2010 Soccer World Cup. Once again, however, a careful balance between getting donations and giving donors exposure in the form of advertising boards in the parks, has to be struck.
"We don't want advertising in public parks."
Moodley says palisade fencing for The Wilds perimeter along Houghton Drive has been budgeted for; it is particularly needed on the intersection with Newton Avenue, where smash-and-grab criminals make a getaway into the garden.
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