Photography by Marie Viljoen.
The home that Julie Alexander-Lillie shares with her husband and two daughters in the suburb of Bergvliet, Cape Town, is surrounded by a generous garden whose soothing green and white palette is emphasized by occasional blues and unifying grays.
In mixed borders indigenous and exotic plants meet to create a restful backdrop for a busy family life.
Of her color choices, Julie says, “I am mostly here in the evening, when the white is the most beautiful.” Pale petunias, Cape fuchsia, and lilies come alive as dusk falls. And rejuvenating green is the color she likes most.
Clipped hedges of fragrant confetti bush with needle-y leaves and formal balls of feathery wild rosemary are a frame for lanky long-stemmed flowering perennials like agapanthus and society garlic.
Julie says that trimming these formal elements is a favorite chore as it helps her to appreciate each plant individually and gives a good platform for new growth the following season She cites Stellenberg a renowned Cape Town garden as...
...another influence with its balance of structure with more chaos inside And she has clearly inherited the green thumb of her mother Marianne Alexander a garden author and leaver of gifts of interesting plants at the family s garden gate
In defiance of the anti-lawn lobby, mown grass is celebrated in this garden, even if weeding it is her least appealing chore.
Julie’s career with Shell International requires frequent overseas travel.
She has creativity to spare. She built the wooden trellises that turn a narrow passage behind the home into a vertical garden, and hung hanging baskets stuffed with seasonal annuals.
The kitchen garden that runs alongside the house is separated from the main garden by a pretty picket fence, made by Julie’s father to prevent their voracious pet tortoise from decimating the edibles within.
Rhubarb provides the ingredient for Craig’s seasonal family favorite.
Julie says that it was important to create a planted space “that is an extension of the home where the family can spend time together.” The covered patio, furnished with comfortable wicker furniture, and a dining table, is filled with roses and potted succulents, and transitions effortlessly to the garden beyond.
An inviting swing hanging from a sturdy branch is “the most-used part of the garden,” says Julie.
With the help twice a month of her gardener Olofati who prefers that his last name not be used Julie keeps this family garden going strong and working hard providing...
...space to play opportunities to create inspiration for the kitchen and the most important element of all a beautiful context in which to take a deep green breath and relax