Iain Buchan believes in magic. And magic, along with determination, hard work and vision, turned a run-down motel in the KwaZulu Natal Midlands into a gorgeous boutique hotel, a sought-after wedding venue, with gardens that would catch the attention of the Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), who selected it as Partner Garden of the Year out of more than 200 gardens worldwide.
Brahman Hills – The Making of a World-Class Garden by Michele Magwood with Iain Buchan and landscape designer Tim Steyn, is a magnificent coffee table book which tells the incredible story, one that began in 2011 when the run down property went on sale. Rumours were that it would become a truck stop and would start renting out rooms by the hour … which was when Iain and his wife Carol, who owned the neighbouring farm, stepped in and bought it.
The couple started small … creating a wedding venue by building a small dam with a rustic chapel on its banks. There was no great vision. And there also wasn’t – as Iain puts it – a ‘why’. Carol was a keen gardener, and her and Iain had been dazzled by the grand gardens they had seen on their travels.
So they decided to transform the green Midlands grasslands into something spectacular. Landscaper Tim Steyn was asked to draw up plans and they were all set to break ground when the pandemic broke out. However Iain pressed on, persuading the staff of the wedding venue to help. So imagine …. waiters swinging picks, housekeepers digging beds, and a chef becoming a master of irrigation. It was all hands on deck … and the magic happened.
The venue now boasts a moat with water lilies. A grotto. A magnificent sculpture garden. There are water features and an impressive veggie garden, the Bee Kraal with 16 beehives and a walkway through a forest. And there’s more to come … Iain wants Brahman Hills to offer guests a real experience – a visit they’ll never forget, and plans are being drawn up for a huge meditation labyrinth on the estate. Not just your common and garden labyrinth. Nope … at 25 hectares perhaps the biggest meditation labyrinth the world.
Brahman Hills – The Making of a World-Class Garden, with page after page of glorious photographs by Connall Oosterbroek, showcases how vision, expertise and sheer hard work created this inspiring place of magic. Jonathan Ball Publishers, R765 from Exclusive Books.
Exploring nature … page by page
“Twenty-five million years may seem like a long time, but in geological terms, it’s a blink − and in that blink, the Rift Valley changed the world. This vast scar that tore through Africa gave rise to the most diverse mammal abundance on Earth, shaped spectacular landscapes, and became the birthplace of humanity. When the Rift began to split, large land masses fractured.
In this violent disruption, new habitats emerged: savannas, plains, woodlands, forests and grasslands. These fertile environments became a cradle for life, accelerating evolution and giving rise to the first hominids three million years ago.
Today, the Rift remains the richest archive of hominin fossils, linking us directly to our ancestors. Stretching 6 400 km from Ethiopia to Mozambique, the Rift is still in motion, and, one day, an ocean will form where the Rift now lies, dividing Africa into two.
What was once a valley of volcanic lava is now a breathtaking corridor of life − its geological scar still visible, its story still unfolding. My own connection to the Rift began in Elburgon, Kenya, where three generations of my family lived. But it wasn’t until 2002, during a seven-month expedition, that I truly saw it. I rounded a bend above Nakuru and looked down into a lake shimmering with thousands of flamingos. That moment sparked a lifelong fascination.”
Since then, South African photographer, filmmaker and naturalist Shem Compion has travelled across Africa, documenting the Rift piece by piece. With Chem’s extraordinary photography, and contributions from a number of experts in their fields, The Rift – Scar of Africa weaves together science, storytelling and photography.
The coffee table book will be a joy to safari travellers and luxury travel enthusiasts, conservation supporters and lovers of wildlife, photography and natural history. R1650, HPH Publishing.
Pangolins have been around for 80 million years. And it’s estimated one is taken from the wild by poachers every five minutes. Demand is largely for pangolin scales for medicine and for meat as a delicacy, mostly in Asia.
They’re the focus of the latest Remembering Wildlife photography book series that raises awareness and funds to save endangered animals around the world. 10 Years of Remembering Wildlife, with images donated by world-leading photographers, is 200 pages of extraordinary images, for a brilliant cause. R1350, Remembering Wildlife.
Tidal pools and mountain streams and kelp-lined coves, Serai Dowling and Matthew Dowling’s A Guide To Wild Swimming in the Western Cape is a guide jam-packed with everything you need to know about exploring and swimming in 100 breathtaking swimming spots. It’s an invitation to remember that immersion in wild water returns us not just to ourselves but to belonging in nature. R475, Rockhopper Books.