When your city children ask what kind of tree eggs grow on, they’re definitely overdue for a farm holiday. Catherine Lanz-Hofmeyr suggests some destinations where sheep get shorn, cows get milked and stud stallions get, well, lucky.

Watch the hills come alive 

Bellwood Farm in the Natal Midlands, near the quaint village of Nottingham Road, has something for everyone. It’s part tranquil country retreat, part racehorse stud farm, with a bit of trout fishing on the side.

While the farm’s horses are more suited to the racetrack than social riding – Bellwood has bred a few champions – children can muck in with general farmyard activities involving ducks, foals and calves or ride Vagabond the pony if they dare. There’s also a large playground with a jungle gym to keep them busy.

Two dams on the property are stocked with rainbow and brown trout. The comfortable self-catering cottages are set just a cast away from the larger dam, which also has five rowing boats for fishing or family fun. Bellwood offers scenic walks through the Midlands countryside and boasts an impressive bird list. A short ramble brings you to the village of Nottingham Road, heart of the Midlands Meander craft route, where the local butcher will happily smoke the trout that didn’t get away, www.bellwood.co.za, 033-266-6218.

Delve into outdoor adventure

For the past 60 years, Blanco Guest Farm in the Eastern Cape interior has been luring city families. For Blanco regulars like us, it is hard to imagine that anyone could not love this perfect sanctuary. The place has a special fall-in-love factor that continues to entice our family to make the annual nine-hour trip from Cape Town.

Situated near Tarkastad, beneath the Winterberg Mountains, Blanco’s bare and breathtaking scenery supports the ideal holiday attitude: do whatever you like. The farm itself is a nature reserve and, on walks, bike rides or horse rides, you’re likely to see zebra, wildebeest, springbok and impala. Tennis and squash courts, a nine-hole golf course, 4×4 trails, horse riding, mountain-bike trails, a pool, Olympic-sized bowling green, snooker table, accessible fishing dams and hiking trails allow you to be as active as you please. Or there’s the sauna, beauty salon, rolling green lawns and your own quaint family chalet for days of relaxation.

Blanco’s number-one perk is that it provides a holiday for all ages. A trampoline, kids’ and teenagers’ games rooms, and a separate kiddies’ dining room are all geared towards giving mom and dad a break. My children bound out of bed at the crack of dawn to milk the cows and ride the ponies before breakfast. During siesta time each afternoon, the Blanco tractor cart departs with its load of nannies and children aboard. Kiddies’ eating times always happen before the adult dining room serves up its feast. Then the social festivities of supper spill over into the Blanc-O Bar. Late lie-in the next morning? Not at Blanco – there’s just too much to do. Contact www.blanco.co.za, 045-846-9163.

Awaken your inner cowboy

Triple B Ranch, as its name suggests, is all about big stud bulls, beefy cattle and working horses. Instead of being mere observers of the ranch goings on, guests can indulge their fantasies of being cowboys for a day or two.

Situated near Vaalwater in the Waterberg, the farm has been in the Baber family for five generations. Patriarch Charles Baber – a one-time winner of Transvaal Farmer of the Year – has officially retired, but you might still talk him into taking you on one of his legendary farm tours incorporating the prize Bonsmara breeding herds and fields of organically grown rose geraniums, tobacco and lemon grass.

Also on the farm is Horizon Horseback Adventures – the place where all the cowboy stuff happens. In the company of a real master, guests can get involved in cattle mustering, try their hand at roping steers (it’s a lot more difficult than it looks in those Western films), check on newborn calves, or drive a herd to a different pasture. In the afternoons, there’s polocrosse. Even if, like me, you’ve never dreamed you could hit a ball from the back of a horse, after a chukka or two you will get the hang of it. If you prefer a tamer equestrian experience, there are rides through the magnificent scenery of the Waterberg or even highly recommended overnight camping expeditions to a neighbouring game farm.

When you’ve finished with the horse play, charming self-catering accommodation awaits in the form of the Butterfly or Windsong Cottages, which form part of a 100-year-old farmstead filled with antiques. Nearby are a heated swimming pool, tennis court and fenced area for the younger ones to play. For more details, visit www.farmstay.co.za and www.ridinginafrica.com.

Indulge in Karoo hospitality 

Karoo lamb country is where the hospitality is genuinely warm, the lifestyle laid-back and the kos always lekker. At Groenvlei Guest Farm near Graaff-Reinet, you’ll become part of Jan and Lynne Minnaar’s family. Groenvlei has been one of the prominent farms in the district for more than 200 years. During a dinner of roast lamb, venison pie and plenty of red wine, the Minnaars regale their guests with stories of the farm’s colourful history.

You will surely over-indulge at dinner time (Lynne’s cooking is legendary and many of her recipes appear in local recipe books), but don’t worry; Groenvlei offers plenty of activities to work off the extra calories. Take a stroll along the bossie trail, where more than 50 indigenous Karoo plants have been identified, or hike through classic Karoo veld while on the lookout for antelope and the 200-plus bird species. There’s also horse riding, mountain biking, swimming, tennis, volley ball, snooker and table tennis. Guests aside, Groenvlei is a working Merino sheep farm with cows and pigs too, so you’re able to feed the pigs, milk the cows and … well, perhaps you should leave the sheep shearing to the experts. Accommodation is either self-catering or catered in private cottages with log fires for winter when you may be treated to snow. www.groenvlei.co.za, 049-845-0305.

Tags: Bellwood Farm, Blanco Guest Farm, Graaff-Reinet, Groenvlei Guest Farm, Midlands, Tarkastad, Triple B Ranch, Vaalwater, Winterberg Mountains