Living Land

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observe which approaches would prove to be most effective

and economically feasible. Repeat photography has been

used to visually record the impacts over time, and to enable

comparison of the different interventions.

In practice the approach followed on Avontuur has been

to first analyse the problem and differentiate between the

causes and effects of disturbances and degradation. The

focus is then on the causes: addressing the effects without

remediating the causes will absorb resources without lasting

impact. Wherever possible interventions are designed to

start at the top of the affected catchment and work progres-

sively downslope. We have sought to work with the forces

of nature so that recovery becomes self-sustaining, and as

far as possible to use only biodegradable materials. These

have primarily been inexpensive local materials such as

wood harvested from alien invasive trees, abundant shrubs

(the toxic and invasive

Galenia africana

and the unpalatable

Elytropappus rhinocerotis

) and sawdust from local sawmills.

In addition use has been made of jute geotextile. These

materials have been used in various combinations for filter-

ing run-off water in gullies, and for re-establishing cover

on denuded soil surfaces.

A number of approaches have been tested to determine

cost-effective ways of re-establishing vegetation on denuded

surfaces. These have included trials in which the soil surface

was broken and fertile topsoil, sawdust and manure were

mixed in. In some cases seeds collected on the property were

sown into the matrix. Geotextile was used to stabilize soil

surfaces and hold moisture and wind-blown soil particles.

Encouraging results have been achieved.

The work on Avontuur has generated much interest among

the small-scale farming community from the southern part

of the Bokkeveld Plateau, some of whom were employed

in the off-season to undertake rehabilitation work on the

property. A number of interactive workshops have been

held, in the course of which participants were introduced

to the approach followed on Avontuur, and then asked to

apply the approach in practice in a small catchment that had

not previously been rehabilitated. Working in small teams,

the participants analysed the problem, identified the causes

and designed and implemented measures to address these,

using materials supplied to them. The results of these train-

ing interventions can be seen elsewhere on the Bokkeveld

Plateau, where farmers have applied them in practice on

degraded soils derived from shale.

Apart from the farming community, the results on

Avontuur have been shared with scholars from the local

school, and with staff of conservation agencies and non-

governmental organizations. All have left their mark on the

landscape, and are able to return and see how their efforts

and the work of others have affected the landscape. In a

rapidly changing world Avontuur offers the opportunity to

witness the slower processes of regeneration and recreation

of nature’s self-sustaining ecosystems.

The impact of gully rehabilitation over three years (left to right)

Images: N Oettlé

Succulent seedlings establish on previously bare surfaces covered

with geotextile

Image: N Oettlé

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