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Life at Tegwaan month by month

We only moved to Tegwaan full-time in August 2019, so we will complete this calendar as we discover the seasons ourselves! While we have been here many times before (first as guests with the previous owner and then as new owners with a focus on cleaning up the farm), it’s only by living here full-time that we started observing the natural life cycles of our local ecosystem.
This is just to help you appreciate those little wonders as and when they happen! :-)

Weather

Like in most parts of South Africa, winters are dry and summers are wet. Winters are “cold” (by South African standards) only between mid-May and mid-Aug, but that’s really only at night because houses are poorly insulated and don’t have efficient heating systems. Days are always sunny (because no clouds in the dry season) and you’ll find yourself only wearing a t-shirt most of the day if you spend your days outside — but yes: you will need a good fleece or down jacket for the evenings!

The first rain normally comes around end-September or October, but it only starts raining on a weekly-or-so basis at then end of October or even in November — though it doesn’t become a tropical climate with daily thunderstorms: even in the midst of summer we can get no rain for two weeks… and sometimes we get a Belgian- or Scottish-style drizzle than can last a week — and then it all dwindles around March.

There really is no bad season to visit, though what you see and hear and feel will be different every month.

January

February

March

April

May

The Pecan nuts in our orchard are ready to be harvested, but you’ll have to share with the Vervet monkeys who come and claim their share every time we’re not looking. Clear blue skies for the most part, but it’s not too hot — the best weather for hiking, rock climbing, and most outdoor activities! (until September-October).

June

Aloes are in full bloom, proudly displaying their various shades of vibrant reds and oranges. The Veld is getting dry, displaying a whole range of yellows and oranges and browns. The contrast between the two is stunning!

July

Aloes are in full bloom.
The weather gets quite windy and there is a chance of veld fires — which is usually quite spectacular at night!

August

We think we have 8 species of frogs in our ponds, and it seems they all wake up from their winter slump at the same time because, from some day in August, every evening is a deafening and enthralling symphony (or cacophony?) of croaking. See how many different calls you can make out!
Days are finally getting warmer! (and longer)

September

Our Big Oak (and his little siblings) comes back to life and displays the most vibrant and surreal shades of green you have ever seen!

October

Mulberries! Lots and lots of mulberries! We harvest them by the bucket and devour them fresh with yoghurt, and turn the rest into jam. Come and help us pick and eat them! — it’s so sad to see so many get lost in the grass and ponds.

October is of course also Jacaranda season. Ours are not aligned in nice rows like in Pretoria but we have a few.

This is usually the time our baby chicks are hatching!

November

The rains should have properly started by now, and the entire landscape is switching back to green.

Lots of small and not-so-small wild flowers are popping up everywhere.

December

Mushroom season starts and when we’re lucky in terms of weather (good rain immediately followed by a few warm days), there’s an abundance of Porcini (yes: Porcini aka Ceps!) and Boletes popping up everywhere (but especially around the pines). Come and help yourself — they’re delicious sautéed in butter, mixed into an omelette, with cream and cheese on toast, or in a risotto. The biggest we found was the size of a dinner plate! We also get a lot of Saffron Milk Caps (aka Red Pine mushroom), which are also very good.

More flowers of all kinds, including our Prides of India, are in full bloom!