All the gardens under the sun!

With the last of the summer holidays ebbing away, there was only one thing to do…  squeeze in one more day away to do something you love.  So, I packed up the family for an early start to what has to be one of the coolest gardens around.  Hamilton Gardens.  I’ve been before, but it isn’t a just do it once kind of a place.  As the seasons course across the calendar the gardens reveal something else just as other features that have had their day in the sun fade away.   This should be an opportunity to go garden visiting at least once a month to soak it all in and appreciate the changes nature provides for us.  It is only two hours away from us and I always come away with the intention to visit again, until life gets in the way.  Not this time – I’ve marked it in the diary…  I will be back.

But let me tell you all about it.  Hamilton city had the forethought and great vision to convert the local rubbish dump beside the Waikato River into a garden, as far back as 1960.  They decided not just to create a botanical garden, but a garden museum exploring the development of gardens across time and cultures, which are represented in over twenty garden styles.   And they are all world class and award winning… internationally.

Short of getting garden overload, which would leave me deliriously giddy for days, I paced myself and only visited a handful, peeked in a few and left a few for next time to ensure I’d return.  So, let me share with you my favourite gardens so far.

Chinese Scholar’s Garden

Normally the Japanese style garden is the one people seem to want to recreate and there were several versions created in Monty Don’s garden show Big Dreams Small Spaces, across three seasons that I binged watched over the holidays.  But no one had expressed interest in a Chinese style and to be honest I’d never really given it much thought myself as an exciting garden possibility.  But as the first garden of the day it blew my breath away.

This garden is based upon gardens from the Sung Dynasty from the 10-12^th Century.  The garden is supposed to take you on a journey that evokes imagination and surprise.   This is a big call, but I think I’ll call it one of my favourites.

The bridge reflects perfectly in the water.

I love the exquisite detail in the paving, against the natural look of the rocks and plants.

With such a grand entrance, you know you are about to experience a completely different culture

The wisteria has been so neatly trained up the posts. I really must return when it is in flower. It must be spectacular.

The pavilion at the top of the garden has a fabulous view of the Waikato River.

Of course there have to be fish…

Pausing to sit and rest on a bench gives a tranquil vista to contemplate life. I could have sat there all day.

Each turn of the path takes you somewhere different, with a different feel but still connected to the same garden – if you know what I mean.

And of course bamboo… an impressive stand providing sound and shade.

You can find out more about this garden >HERE<

Italian Renaissance Gardens

I almost didn’t visit this one as I wanted to save it for next time and the day was late and the kids were beginning to moan.  I promised them I’d just take a peek.   But on turning the corner and emerging from the dark corridor into the bright light of day, the most incredible garden revealed itself to us and we were lost to it.  The intensely blue of the sky allowed the bright colours of the plants, contained within the deep greens of the hedging plants of the formally laid out garden and the cream brickwork and sea green geometric pools at the centre of it all to just pop.  It was complex in its design, yet somehow elegant in a way that only an Italian could pull off.   I will visit this garden again, and again… and again….

Aside from all the incredible vistas, there are also nooks and cranny’s with surprising features like this corridor leading to an amphitheater.

Bright colours pop in the geometric gardens

The pots laid out in the corners of the mini beds appeal to my sense of order and control

The first sight of the garden takes your breath away.

The view back across the garden is also breathtaking.

The shaded pergola above the garden provides another amazing outlook

The fountain in the centre of the garden is a magnificent feature.

Wow. Just wow.

The blue of the pond and the blue of the sky makes the green of the hedges and the cream of the building illuminate.

You can find out more about this garden >HERE< 

Mansfield Garden

My third favourite garden was rather quirky in its origin, but it translated wonderfully from the pages of a book I now must read.  The garden is designed around Katherine Mansfield’s short story ‘The Garden Party’.  She is one of our famous authors from the beginning of the 19^th century and had a fabulously daring lifestyle until her early death aged 34.  This garden not only reflects a garden in her story but also what a typical garden would have been like for the well to do kiwi back in the Edwardian days.   It is so well done, you feel like you are one of the attendees at the party as you make your way down the paths.

The musicians will be here soon

I guess this will make more sense after I read the book – but it is cool nevertheless

The guests will have arrived in the best style of the day

The view back acrouss the garden from the pergola is delightful

The back garden looks full and lush and makes a lovely backdrop

Even the food is ready and waiting, such a party

The home, typical of the period, feels old but is just a facade, and feels welcoming

The marquee ready and waiting for the party guests to arrive.

How lovely would it be to rest upon this porch with a glass of something cold

You can find out more about this garden >HERE< 

There are only so many words to fit on the page and images to jam in as well, so we will continue this again next week.  There is still so much to show you.

Come again soon – after more than a week of sunshine the garden is beginning to finally bear a proper summer harvest.

Sarah the Gardener  : o)

NB: Clicking on each image will give a bigger picture and a few words to describe them.