Feature garden

Poor soil conditions don’t necessarily mean a poor garden. Turn your wasteland of rubble into a pretty paradise Photo via Getty Images Gardeners are constantly exhorted to improve their soil conditions, to add lime, well-rotted compost and manure, to water in the evening, to do this, do that… all to give their plants their best […]

Once lacking life and vibrancy, this inner-city Auckland garden has been turned into a subtropical sanctuary with a subtle Asian sensibility Among the many beautiful architecturally designed homes and gardens that line the streets around Auckland’s inner-city, there’s a special set of trees that grab the attention of passers-by. The graceful trunks and cloud-pruned foliage […]

No more mud, no more mowing. A total backyard redesign has given this family exactly what they wanted – a garden that almost takes care of itself When planning renovations it pays to think about your landscaping requirements at the same time. Leaving it until afterwards, as often happens, can result in access problems for […]

This nurse-turned-designer wanted a garden that offered privacy and poolside fun for her family as well as biodiversity for birds and bees Meet + greet Louise Hanlon, (landscape designer), her husband Nick, Maxim, 18, Scarlett, 14, plus Monty the dog. Nursing and landscape design may seem like two very different professions but for Auckland-based designer […]

Ten years of hard work by this green-fingered gardener and her handy husband have transformed an empty Marlborough paddock into an abundant and blooming garden fit for a king – and hordes of garden-loving visitors It’s considered a great honour to have your garden selected for Garden Marlborough, a renowned garden tour that has taken […]

This mid-century home’s garden was overdue for a modern update. Landscape designer Ben Shearer found inspiration in the geometric shapes and concrete elements of the original house – as well as the needs of two adventurous kids How to create a garden that would meet the needs of a young family without compromising the elegant, clean […]

Longing for an outdoor space that reminded him of Mauritius, this Auckland man found the perfect collaborator in fellow Mauritian Arnaud Daurat, who designed a garden with its heart in the Indian Ocean and its roots in the Pacific When Michel Adolphe wanted to revamp the outdoor living areas of his Castor Bay home on […]

For this seasoned Blenheim gardener, a brand-new patch was an opportunity to create a potager garden that nourishes the body and delights the eye Dianne Croad loves her outdoor pots, furniture, topiary and artworks, and has used them to great effect in all her gardens. During her latest move, in August 2016, to a house […]

By using plants instead of fences to define their property, this couple ended up with lush green spaces and a sense of privacy – all on a small section in urban Auckland Borrowing views of the surrounding landscape is an age-old design trick traditionally used in Japanese gardens that is now a feature of many […]

Carved out of a blustery, salt-licked site by a couple and their obliging teenagers, this lush garden is still drawing the clan together years later – along with hordes of admirers They say gardening is a great way to connect with family. This is certainly true in the case of Jenny and Guy Oakley whose […]