Tourism celebrates Kirstenbosch win

Kirstenbosch Gardens, a consistent winner at the Chelsea Show (Image: Victor Geere, via Wikimedia Commons)

After initial concern at the beginning of the year that Kirstenbosch National Botanical Garden might not have been exhibiting at this year's Chelsea Flower Show (for the first time in decades) due to lack of sponsorship, it has now been announced that the South African National Biodiversity Institute's (SANBI's) 2011 Kirstenbosch - SA Chelsea entry "Botanical Landscapes" scooped its 31st gold medal at the prestigious RHS Chelsea Flower Show in London.

CEO of Cape Town Tourism, Mariette du Toit-Helmbold cheers, "On behalf of Cape Town Tourism we would like to congratulate the team! We celebrate alongside SANBI and their sponsors as this award is also a great win for tourism to the Cape. Using, as it does, natural fynbos and features that are exclusively Capetonian, it brings Cape Town into the hearts and minds of Chelsea Flower Show visitors and provides a rare and unusual marketing opportunity, raising awareness about the Cape on an international level."

Sponsorship... seemingly the perennial problem

Kirstenbosch Gardens, the jewel in the crown - and one of the world's most spectacular settings for a nation's national gardens. (Image: Frode Inge Helland, via Wikimedia Commons)

Sponsorship was pulled together in the end by the Provincial Government of the Western Cape and the SA Gold Coin Exchange and Scoin shops.

The stand had a backdrop of the Mother City's majestic Table Mountain, and was composed of proteas and fynbos picked according to the Sustainable Harvesting Code of Best Practice.

In contrast, the dry desert of the Richtersveld section showed some rare species as part of the Succulent Karoo biome. Both of these areas, Kirstenbosch and the Richtersveld, lie within identified biodiversity hotspots.

The 2011 award winning exhibit will be recreated later in the year in Gauteng, Durban and Cape Town when locals will have a chance to share in the celebrations.