“My vision was to create a relaxed environment at the front of the house so there was a welcoming and warm feeling as one entered. There’d be trial and error until we got to where we are”.

— Clyde Jureidini, football administrator and garden enthusiast

A self-confessed creative who loves painting, drawing and graphic design, Jureidini also loves to see plants grow. Indeed, the garden is where he seeks solace after a full day. “I find that watering and spending a little time outside of the norm of what you do tends to give you a different perspective,” he says.

Jureidini’s passion for gardening dates back three-plus decades “Getting married early in life, in 1979 in Harbour View, my wife and I soon realised that we had to start planting our own flowers as we had both left the comfort of our parents’ homes,” he explains. His most significant plant purchase was a potted bloom for his wife Judith, soon after the birth of their first child, Dwayne.

He’s not looked back! He describes the journey as a positive one “to beautify, watch them grow, watering while thinking about life’s daily challenges and seeking solutions”. An additional benefit, he shares, are the watercolour paintings he used to do of them”. Other positives, he reveals, are the learning process, seeing them grow and having a few exceed his wildest expectations. Plus, the satisfaction of the progress made. Finally, there’s the shared passion “that we are able to give others as we watch them take photos with their children in front of our garden”.

“These [positives] easily outweigh the disappointment of buying plants that you like but cannot keep up, due to lack of knowledge, care or experience. We’ve seen some flourish but we’ve also seen a few die,” he says.

Jureidini’s passion has proven contagious. His family is also involved. They help, advise and suggest as well as add plants, fertiliser, water and encourage by showing pride, he shares. With football at a standstill for nearly two years as a result of the novel coronavirus pandemic it became a safe space. “It helped,” he says, “to calm the troubled landscape, and provided temporary respite”.

His advice to those wanting to commence their garden journey is: “Go for it, if it is your passion or if you are in need of a temporary escape from the daily challenges of today’s crazy world in which we live.”