Landscaping in the Western Cape

Cape Town's water rules, and the ones that may be coming

Some City of Cape Town water regulations apply permanently, whatever the restriction level. Gardens may be watered only before 09:00 or after 18:00, hosepipes must have a spray nozzle or self-closing device, paving may not be hosed down with municipal water, and garden ponds may not be topped up automatically with a float valve on municipal supply.

On top of that, restrictions look likely. EWN reported on 23 October 2026 that restrictions could start in December, once the national Department of Water and Sanitation finishes its modelling. Planting a thirsty lawn in November is a gamble.

• Ask for irrigation on a timer set inside the permitted hours.
• Have the landscaper plan for a summer in which watering days may be cut.
• If you're designing a pond, plan to fill it by hand or from rainwater, not an automatic top-up.

Boreholes and wellpoints: register and sign them

If your garden runs on wellpoint or borehole water, the rules still reach it. The City requires boreholes and wellpoints to be registered with it, and alternative sources such as greywater, rainwater and spring water need the City's signage. Its rules also say borehole and wellpoint water must be used sparingly and efficiently, so it isn't a way round the watering hours.

If a landscaper is connecting irrigation to a wellpoint, ask them to confirm it's registered before they finish.

Plant in autumn, and don't feed the fynbos

With most rain falling between April and October, autumn planting lets winter do the establishing. SANBI's PlantZAfrica notes that even tough species need time: Protea obtusifolia, a Cape protea suited to Cape Flats and coastal gardens, should get at least two summers of regular watering before it can fend for itself, and Protea grandiceps is water-wise only once established, normally about three years after planting.

Proteas and many fynbos plants have sensitive roots adapted to nutrient-poor soil. SANBI advises against strong fertilisers and manures, and warns that phosphate-rich fertilisers can make some species collapse and die. That rules out the compost-heavy soil preparation that suits a lawn.

• Keep fynbos beds separate from lawn and fed beds, with their own irrigation zone.
• Ask what fertiliser the landscaper will use near proteas, and check its phosphorus content.
• Mulch rather than dig around established proteas; their roots are easily damaged.