With some of the oldest garden centres in the country, Starke Ayres is continuing their decades-long dedication to the earth and the community by joining the Spekboom Challenge (#SpekboomChallenge).
Their garden centre in Rosebank first started 143 years ago and since then they have stuck to their motto and supported the Western Cape in many ways.
“From these humble beginnings our motto Innovative Gardening Solutions has been the core of our culture, the staff we employ and the ethos in which we work and now, internationally as a seed breeding company with its own laboratories and farms growing Non-GMO disease resistant and high yielding seed and trialing these on our farm and those of specialist farmers, we have grown to be the largest seed company in Africa and a large competitor on the global market exporting our seed to farmers all over the world. For the last three years Starke Ayres Garden Centres in Cape Town have been working closely with The Spekboom Association of Southern Africa,” says a spokesperson from Starke Ayres.
As part of their dedication to the challenge, Starke Ayres centres have been selling as many spekbooms as they can with special prices and free incentives for the past eight months, sometimes managing to sell as many as 450 small plants a week to businesses, students, restaurants and homeowners alike.
While doing so, they are also promoting the importance of planting this wonder plant at school educational sessions every September, and with magnificent Spekboom pamphlets available in-store and on their website and their Facebook page or follow them on Instagram.
On February 7, the team at its Rosebank branch joined in a unified decision to sign a pledge to assist locals with knowledge on the plant as well as personally plant spekbooms at the business and in the personal spaces of employees to improve the environment.
“Since August 19 but for a limited time only we continue to give a sample bag of Bonemeal away with every plant purchased to ensure that no matter the soil type this most important plant indigenous to Africa has the best chance of success,” says a Starke Ayres spokesperson.
DID YOU KNOW?
Starke Ayres served the public of Cape Town as a supplier of quality seed, trees, shrubs, pot plants, bulbs, fresh flowers and a variety of garden requisites through its retail outlets in Mowbray / Rosebank since 1877. The company was entrusted with the floral decorations for government, diplomatic and civil receptions, the Royal Family’s visit and the 21st birthday ball in honour of Princess Elizabeth, now Queen of England.
Pictures: Supplied
