Babylonstoren hosts regular workshops where they share their knowledge and things that they have learnt along the way on the farm and in their community. Experts in their fields host these workshops in collaboration with the team of Babylonstoren. They’re quite hands-on so you will get to try out the skills, techniques or disciplines. Starting with a walk through the garden, it is usually a full-day affair with lunch included.
Hotel guests are invited to take part in any of our workshops during their stay at no extra cost – it’s on us.
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Create beautiful tree shapes with espalier
Espalier is the art of training your fruit trees to grow against a wall or fence. Trusty secateurs in hand, resident pruning pro, Anton Roux, will invite guests to admire the various espaliered fruit trees on display in the Babylonstoren garden – apples, pears, quinces and nectarines. He will then get down to the details of the different stages of tree shaping in the espalier style, from years one to ten. And then it’s over to you – grab a pair of secateurs and practise the technique yourself on a tree you can take home with you.
- Where: Please meet us at the Farm Shop
- Date: 10 & 11 August 2022
- Time: 10h00–15h00
- Presented by: Anton Roux
- Cost: R850 per person
- Only 15 places are available
Steaming coffee from Lekker Room is served upon arrival. Lunch at the Greenhouse Restaurant is included.
Encounter the beautiful world of fynbos
Of the six floral kingdoms in the world, the Cape’s iconic fynbos region is the smallest and richest, with the highest known concentration of plant species within its perimeters.
This is your chance to experience Babylonstoren’s beautiful fynbos fields up close, in a sensory experience guided by master gardener Ernst van Jaarsveld and Babylonstoren conservation ecologist and entomologist Arné Stander. You’ll encounter the classics like proteas and ericas. You’ll see various fynbos adaptations of this resilient shrub, characterised in certain plant families such as the protea, Cape reeds, erica, daisy and iris families.
- Where: Please meet us at the Farm Shop
- Date: 17 August 2022
- Time: 10h00–13h00
- Presented by: Ernst van Jaarsveld, Arné Stander
- Cost: R600 per person
- Only 20 places are available
Steaming coffee from our Lekker Room is served upon arrival. Scones at the Greenhouse are included.
Forage for indigenous veld foods
For thousands of years, the indigenous peoples of Southern Africa survived in the veld by foraging for their food – bulbs, shoots, flowers and fruit. We start the day with a walk through the garden. Botanist Ernst van Jaarsveld will share his vast knowledge of South Africa’s indigenous edibles, teaching guests how to recognise seasonal plants that they can pick and nibble on. Guests will also learn how to propagate these edible varieties to take home and plant there.
- Where: Please meet us at the Farm Shop
- Date: 24 August 2022
- Time: 10h00–15h00
- Presented by: Ernst van Jaarsveld
- Cost: R850 per person
- Only 15 places are available
Steaming coffee from our Lekker Room is served upon arrival. Our guests are invited to a lunch menu inspired by the indigenous food plants discussed in the workshop, served in the Bakery.
Spring decor from the garden
We celebrate in true Babylonstoren style by harvesting seasonal vegetables, flora and fauna to use as exquisite decor. We invite you into our festive venues to explore different plant-based decorative styles for the table and to share as gifts. Each guest will go home with a herb posy or a bouquet of their own creation.
- Where: Please meet us at the Farm Shop
- Date: 30 August 2022
- Time: 10h00–15h00
- Presented by: Constance Stuurman
- Cost: R850 per person
- Only 15 places are available
Steaming coffee from our Lekker Room is served upon arrival. Lunch at the Greenhouse Restaurant is included.
Craft your own homemade soaps from the garden
Learn how to make your own natural soap using Babylonstoren’s fragrant garden as inspiration. The class kicks off with guests harvesting their own aromatics (like lavender, rosemary or lemon leaf) from the fields and orchards surrounding the farm. In the Babylonstoren Scented Room, you’ll learn how essential oils are distilled from natural ingredients before using these in your own soap. Practical advice on the intricacies of natural soapmaking, such as infusing, preparing and casting soap, will be discussed by Babylonstoren’s in-house compounder Gavin Hendricks. Creating and blending different products like bath oils, balms and moisturisers may also be explored if time permits. Guests get to take home their own creations at the end of the day.
- Where: Please meet us at the Farm Shop
- Date: 31 August 2022
- Time: 10h00–15h00
- Presented by: Gavin Hendricks, Shani Krige
- Cost: R850 per person
- Only 10 places are available
Steaming coffee from our Lekker Room is served upon arrival. Lunch at the Tasting Room is included.