The park consists of 16 hectares of indigenous vegetation on the sides of two rocky koppies or hills with views of the city of Johannesburg and its suburbs.

Through the 1990s the park gained a reputation for being highly dangerous and crime ridden, however, it has since become "rejuvenated" due to the efforts of volunteers.

[1] Whilst writing his novel Jock of the Bushveld, Sir James Percy FitzPatrick lived in the house Hohenheim bordering the area that is now The Wilds which would have formed an extension of his garden.

[citation needed] In 2012, Johannesburg artist, James Delaney, decided to reclaim the park and began an ongoing project of de-weeding and clearing some of the dense overgrowth in order to create good lines of sight between paths.

[citation needed] After the 1936 Empire Exhibition hosted in Johannesburg, The Wilds was designated as an indigenous South African botanical garden.

On the Southwest side of the park, there are a collection of greenhouses which have fallen into decay and are fenced off from public access.

[6] Since Delaney's Owl Forest, a number of community organisations have joined in trying to bring people back to The Wilds.