Landscaping in the Free State
In the Free State, where you plant a tree can crack a wall, and the frost-free months are shorter than the calendar suggests.
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Free State gardens have to deal with two things that coastal ones mostly don't: some of the most active expansive clay in the country, and long, hard frost seasons. Neither shows up on a pretty concept plan, so raise both before the design is drawn.
Keep thirsty trees away from the house on clay
Engineers working in the province describe the clays across much of the central interior, the Free State included, as South Africa's most active. They swell when wet and shrink when dry, and a large tree speeds up the drying. More than 99% of the water a tree takes up is transpired through its leaves, and on clay that shrinkage can pull the ground from under a foundation.
SANS 10400-H, Annex D, sets out how far trees should be planted from masonry walls on clay sites, as a multiple of the tree's mature height:
- H1 sites: 0.75 × mature height
- H2 sites: 1.0 × mature height
- H3 sites: 1.5 × mature height
- Shrubs: at least 1.2 m to 1.5 m from masonry walls, depending on the site class
- Don't let garden irrigation or stormwater pond within 1.5 m of masonry walls
Trees to be wary of
The same annex singles out species particularly prone to causing damage: all eucalyptus, Lombardy poplars, London planes, willows and jacarandas. If you're inheriting one near the house, get advice before removing it too. The guidance warns that taking out a tree on clay can cause large swelling movements as the soil wets up again.
Ask your landscaper for the mature height of every tree on the plan and check it against the distance to your walls. The site class comes from a geotechnical site inspection, so check whether your stand has one on file.
Frost: count on May to September
A study of Free State minimum temperatures from 1960 to 2015 found that in Bloemfontein, in half of all years, the first medium frost arrives by about 1 May, and frost can still occur well into September. The south-east is harsher: around Wepener and Zastron the frost-free period at the same probability is only about 189 to 195 days.
For landscaping, that rules out many subtropical plants in exposed spots, and it means kikuyu lawn will go brown for months each winter. Plant frost-tender material in spring after the last frosts, and ask the landscaper which plants on their list are frost hardy.
The rains start later in the west
Rainfall drops from up to about 1,200 mm a year in the north-east to roughly 450 mm in the west. The rainy season also starts earlier in the north-east, by mid-November in four years out of five in the Thabo Mofutsanyane district around Bethlehem and Harrismith, but only in early December in the central and western Lejweleputswa area around Welkom.
If you're laying lawn or planting a new bed in Welkom, plan to irrigate through November rather than waiting for rain that may not come for weeks.
Landscaping prices in the Free State
We couldn't find a published source showing that landscaping costs reliably more or less in the Free State than nationally. Our landscaping cost guide has the national ranges.
One local cost to plan for: moving or removing a large tree that's too close to the house on clay. Get it quoted separately, and see what to check before you hire.
Where in the Free State
You can request quotes from anywhere in the province, including Mangaung, Bloemfontein, Welkom, Bethlehem, Kroonstad, Sasolburg, Parys, Harrismith. Choose your region and suburb in the form, and providers who cover your area will quote.
Landscaping in the Free State: questions
How far from my house should I plant a tree in Bloemfontein?
On expansive clay, SANS 10400-H Annex D ties the distance to the tree's mature height: 0.75 times on H1 sites, once on H2 sites and 1.5 times on H3 sites. So a tree that grows to 8 m on an H2 site should be at least 8 m from masonry walls.
Are jacarandas safe to plant near a house in the Free State?
Not close to it. SANS 10400-H lists jacarandas with eucalyptus, willows, Lombardy poplars and London planes as species particularly prone to damaging walls and foundations, mainly by drying out clay soils. Give them more room than the minimum, or choose a smaller, less thirsty tree.
When is it safe to plant frost-tender plants in the Free State?
Wait until frost risk has passed, which in Bloemfontein can mean the second half of September or later. The south-east, around Wepener and Zastron, has an even shorter frost-free season. Ask your landscaper to stick to frost-hardy plants in exposed beds.
Sources
- Tree damage to walls and foundations (SANS 10400-H Annex D), SANS 10400 Building Regulations
- Using Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) maps to enhance data interpretation and decision making to manage geotechnical risks, Waters and Theron, ARCSMGE 2024
- The study of frost occurrence in Free State Province of South Africa, Moeletsi, Advances in Meteorology, 2016
- Provincial Climate Narratives, Free State Climate Change Information System, SAEON
- Rainy season characteristics of the Free State Province of South Africa with reference to rain-fed maize production, Moeletsi and Walker, Water SA 38(5), 2012
Last updated 28 October 2026.
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