Hidden gem 15 min from East London

This farm is an oasis close to East London. There are so many possibilities that lie in wait with this property.

Ikhwezi Lokusa Organic Lifestyle

Ikhwezi Lokusa (The Xhosa name for Bright Star of the Morning - Venus) is situated in the Eastern Cape of South Africa, East London.

The farm is 22 hectares / 54 acres and situated on a hill with valleys on both sides with a breathtaking view of the Nahoon River Dam.

Existing Dwellings

The Main Dwelling: (266 m2) Lounge (64 m2) The Lounge/Event area has a large fireplace and drop down canvasses opening up to the deck area. The Main bedroom is a beautifully tiled room with French doors opening up overlooking the pond in front of the main house. The Bunk bed storage room was designed either for storage or sleeping 2 people. The Bathroom has 2 toilets and sink. The Walk-in fridge was designed to service the bar area. The fridge door situated in the kitchen area is next to the pantry. The open plan kitchen houses a cooking sink, double wash up sink, gas/electric stove, 2 plate gas burner, cupboard space, fridges, freezers and washing machine. Hot water is supplied by a 150L Solar geyser.

Showers runs on a rocket stove and are highly efficient. The Bar area is made from Cyligna wood treated with natural oils.

The Second Dwelling: (180 m2) has 4 rooms, 3 showers, 1 bath and 3 toilets. Room 1 is en-suite with shower, toilet and sink, Room 2 is a large Double Room. Room 3 has a beautiful shower and sink with ocean pebble floor finish and large windows, separate toilet and another wet room that has a bath or can be taken out and used as another shower. The Main room and kitchen is a self contained unit with large windows, kitchenette and bbq area that opens up from the kitchen area with a fire donkey boiler which services hot water needs to the whole building.

Third Dwelling: (64 m2) is Situated on the Western side of the property with great view of the Orchards and Nahoon Dam. It has two bedrooms and one bathroom, storage room and a Kitchen/Lounge adjacent to each other. The BBQ area is designed with a

donkey boiler which services the hot water needs to the bottom house, outside shower and bath.

Double Carport: 54 m2 Suitable for parking two cars with storage space.

Single Carport: 24 m2 Parking and mechanical works

Store room and workshop: 72 m2 The toolshed is divided into 3 areas and have all the necessary counters, tools and storage space.

Road and Access

Ikhwezi Lokusa is situated along the N2 within the Nahoon Dam District. The existing access road entrance is on the opposite side of the N2 and the farm is accessed through a culvert underneath the N2. There are also 2 unofficial access points if needed. A 380m dirt servitude road leads to the farm entrance. From the farm entrance the Main House and parking is a further 360m. All farm roads are in good condition and the farm is accessible for all types of vehicles including construction vehicles.

Open Lands Grazing or Grain

Of the total 22ha there is an estimated 4ha that is grass and suitable for grazing and a further 4ha with existing low density vegetation such as Acacia Karroo (Sweet Thorn) and Acacia Melanoxyolon (Black Wattle) which is suitable for grazing browsers such as goats or antelope. In the case of cultivating maize or grain for feed or resell, there is an estimated 4ha which is suitable, level, swaled and situated alongside the main water line with a 10000L reservoir to be used for irrigation. The irrigation reservoir is fed from 2 x 10000L reservoirs higher up the main line.

Existing Water Infrastructure

The water infrastructure consists of a main holding dam which is fed from run off from the N2 and the Dam has a holding capacity of an estimated 500 000L. At the dam there is an

existing Climax windmill which pushes an estimated 800L per hour up to the main reservoir which is two 10 000L cement tanks. There is a secondary line installed and a movable petrol pump available in the event of low reservoirs due to wind speeds being too low. From the main reservoir there is a 40ml main line which is gravity fed to all the dwellings with valves which lead to the 10 000L reservoir, the Market garden, all the Dwellings, the Tilapia pond and the Market Garden Nursery. The second dwelling has seven 5 000L tanks which are fed from rain water harvested from the roof and gravity fed from a 10m tower and can be filled using the dam water. The main dwelling also has a 10 000L rainwater tank which is fed from the main dwellings roof as well as a 5000L for kitchen use. The third dwelling has a 5000L water tank fed from the roof and can be filled using the dam water. The Tilapia pond holds an estimated 45000 L which is used to irrigate the Market garden.

There is also a further 20000L of tanks harvesting water of garage roofs, nursery and the chicken coop.

Chicken Hoks

This permaculture design works extremely well in the sense that it falls within zone 2 and close to the main house and market garden. It has a chicken hock and laying space, 4 camps, chicken run and compost heap with another camp adjacent. The Chicken Hok two

is situated within the market garden two and has a similar capacity as the camp at market Garden One. Currently there are nine Bosvelder chickens, two roosters and seven hens in the hok at Market Garden 1. The chickens are currently used for egg production.

Their is great potential to upscale the chicken production massively to produce both chicken and eggs for the free-range retail market.

Cleared area for Tunnels and Nursery

Between the Secondary Dwelling and The bamboo plantation it has been cleared and levelled and to be used for a future nursery development. The area is close to water infrastructure and is suitable for the installation of a multi-span tunnel and shade house for cultivation.

Nuts and citrus Orchard

The Nut and Fruit orchard is well established and irrigated through flood irrigation from main line. The trees listed here are all bearing fruit and been harvested.

Established Trees: Macadamia x 42, Pecan x 10, Orange x 15, Mandarin x 15, Guava x 10, Peach x 4, Apricot x 2, Figua x 3, Banana x 50, Kei Apple x 9, Grapes x 4, Apple x 2, Mango x 2, Lemon x 5, Avocado x 5, Granadilla x 15, Guavadilla x 3, Grapefruit x 2, Paw-Paw x 4

Other trees that have been planted but are yet to bear fruit are: Paw paw and Coffee trees.

Bee Hives

There are 5 thriving Bee Hives and due to our orchards the farm has the capacity to easily house up to 50 hives. We harvested 99kg of honey at the end of January 2017

Tilapia Pond

The Main Dam is stocked with Tilapia and in conjunction with the the Pond below the Main Dwelling, a harvesting and breeding program is followed. The dam is used for fattening and harvesting the fish for fillets. The pond is also used to fertilise the market garden which is rich in nutrients. The nutrient rich water is gravity fed into hose pipes and also with an over flow which continuously runs into market garden creating a fertile environment for the cultivation of herbs and vegetables.

Market Garden Nursery

The Market Garden Nursery has a shade house structure with a clear sheet roofing in the germination area. The nursery has over head irrigation for the the seedling germination benches. There are open beds for germinating seedlings or growing micro-greens and leafy greens for the homestead and market. The Nursery currently has some tree and seedling stock consisting of Pawpaw, Custard apple, Tangerine, Tobacco, Coffee and Carob. The open beds are planted with chilies, beans, parsley, Spanish melon and wild cucumber.

The Market Garden

The Market garden consists of different levelled terraces with rock stairs and a seating area with an artificial lawn and Bamboo pergola. The over flow from the dam runs into a tropical fruit terrace consisting of Bananas and Papaws. The terraces are all retained using poles, tires and Vetiver grass. The market garden changes from season to season but is currently planted with Mixed herbs, Pumpkin, Maize, Peanuts, Chickpeas, Pineapples and Black eyed beans.

Cleared plots for future dwellings

There are plots that have been cleared and the grass is cut which have been allocated for the construction of future dwellings. All the proposed areas are close to water infrastructure and electrical infrastructure. The areas have been selected carefully considering access, the view and services.

Existing Vegetation

The farm falls within the Savanna Biome. It is characterized by a grassy ground layer and a distinct upper layer of woody plants. Where this upper layer is near the ground the

vegetation may be referred to as Shrubveld, where it is dense as Woodland, and the

intermediate stages are locally known as Bushveld. The existing vegetation consists of grass lands and sipical woodland forests running along the riparian lines and on the lower section of the farm. Some large established species which are noted is Vepris lanceolata (White ironwood), Diospyros whyteana (bladder-nut), Harpephyllum caffra (Wild Plum), Trichilia drageana (Forest Mahogany), Acacia karoo (Sweet Thorn), Millettia grandis (Umzimbeet.) The area around the homestead has been landscaped and trees have been planted as architectural and ornamental trees to create shade, provide shelter and as wind breaks. Species include Quercus suber (Oak Tree), Melaleuca alternifolia (Tea tree),

Afrocarpos falcatus (Outeniqua yellowwood), Afrocartus latifia (Real Yellowwood),

Calodendrum capensis (Cape Chestnut), Nuxia floribunda (Forest Elder), Strelitzia nicloli (Wild banana), Aloe barbarea (Tree Aloe), Trichelia emitica (Mahogany), Ceratonia siliqua (Carob). Bamboo has been planted as a resource crop for the use in stakes in the nursery and for cladding in construction.