go! Platteland

The slow life is the good life: go! Platteland celebrates the rural lifestyle and the entrepreneurial spirit of people whose hearts are in the platteland – whether they grew up in the countryside or are already based there, are contemplating making the move or simply hankering after the rural life. Platteland offers articles that focus on entrepreneurs, DIY projects, animals, gardening, food, towns and people. It is both practical and inspiring – as much of a visual feast as it is a celebration of great writing.

Long live our farmers

go! Platteland

Chitchat

News and diary • Beat the cold this year with rich sensory experiences: Winter is a good time to master sourdough bread, drink ancient honey wine and keep your fur-kids cosy and stylish.

Meet Alfonsina

Brewing with bees

Carmién celebrates a quarter of a century

Grace + Merci goes online

Winter fashion for Fido

Dates to diarise

Time to read • Enjoy of your bread buttered on both sides with this substantial offering new food and nature titles.

SUBSCRIBE NOW AND EXPLORE THE SLOWLIFE!

Let’s go to town • We scouted out these cosy local finds by small makers in Bedford, Botrivier, Cape Town, Citrusdal, Gillitts, Graaff-Reinet, Henley-on-Klip, Jeffreys Bay, Laingsburg, Misgund, Paarl, Piket-Bo-Berg, Stellenbosch, St Francis Bay and Winburg.

Graaf-Reinet More than a pretty picture • Graaff-Reinet, with its imposing church building and the well-preserved heritage buildings, is a lovely town – and then there’s the scenic beauty, not to mention the interesting, enterprising people who live there.

Ballad of the butter farmer • High up in the Italian Alps, Maria van Zyl learnt to make the tastiest butter in South Africa. Then she started a clever “subscription farming business” delivering dairy products to households in the Cape on a weekly basis, which is how she could afford to buy the first five cows for her micro-dairy. Meet the (bio)dynamic small-scale farmer with big plans.

On mountains and moments • On a trip in the southern Drakensberg, a torrential downpour and a field of prickly thistles got acclaimed photographer Obie Oberholzer thinking about the power of perspective.

Groot-Marico The small village with the big heart • A little wild, a bit down-and-out, and a tad airy-fairy – that’s how some describe Groot-Marico. Nearly 100 years since this village inspired Herman Charles Bosman to write some of his best stories, it still enchants visitors today.

The head hen who lays the golden eggs • The Country Chic is a delightful specialty store in the Swartland where small farmer and entrepreneur Suzanne Smit sells the organic free-range chicken eggs and poultry meat she produces – straight from her farm to the shelves of her own store.

Ohrigstad’s tiny big farmer • Agriculture courses through the veins of the Els family, who have been farming in the Ohrigstad valley in Limpopo since the 1930s. And they are getting younger and younger: Grandfather Jan Els was 36 when he set out, father Dewald 27… and little Waldo got behind the wheel of massive machines at the age of 6!

Find wisdom in the forest It all starts with soil • A tree is an investment in any garden, even though patience is required to pluck the (figurative) fruit. When you plant several trees together to create your own forest, the reward is so much greater. They offer shade, they support life… and they improve your soil. We spent time reflecting in our white karee“forest”– and learnt a lot.

From food scraps to compost in a jiffy We test the iCompost • If turning kitchen waste into compost could be done at the touch of a button, more people would take it up, and much less waste would end up in landfills. That’s what Himkaar Singh, the man behind the...