Whanganui Chronicle
  • Whanganui Chronicle home
  • Latest news
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
  • Death notices
  • Classifieds

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • On The Up
  • Sport
  • Business
  • Opinion
  • Lifestyle
  • Property
    • All Property
    • Residential property listings
  • Rural
    • All Rural
    • Dairy farming
    • Sheep & beef farming
    • Horticulture
    • Animal health
    • Rural business
    • Rural life
    • Rural technology

Locations

  • Taranaki
  • National Park
  • Whakapapa
  • Ohakune
  • Raetihi
  • Taihape
  • Marton
  • Feilding
  • Palmerston North

Media

  • Video
  • Photo galleries
  • Today's Paper - E-Editions
  • Photo sales
  • Classifieds

Weather

  • New Plymouth
  • Whanganui
  • Palmertson North
  • Levin

NZME Network

  • Advertise with NZME
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • BusinessDesk
  • Newstalk ZB
  • Sunlive
  • ZM
  • The Hits
  • Coast
  • Radio Hauraki
  • The Alternative Commentary Collective
  • Gold
  • Flava
  • iHeart Radio
  • Hokonui
  • Radio Wanaka
  • iHeartCountry New Zealand
  • Restaurant Hub
  • NZME Events

SubscribeSign In
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Home / Whanganui Chronicle

Gorgeous Gardens: Barbara Broughton's small-is-beautiful Whanganui garden

By Anne-Marie McDonald
Reporter·Whanganui Chronicle·
26 Dec, 2017 02:00 AM2 mins to read

Subscribe to listen

Access to Herald Premium articles require a Premium subscription. Subscribe now to listen.
Already a subscriber?  Sign in here

Listening to articles is free for open-access content—explore other articles or learn more about text-to-speech.
‌
Save

    Share this article

Barbara Broughton in her small central city garden. PHOTO/STUART MUNRO

Barbara Broughton in her small central city garden. PHOTO/STUART MUNRO

Barbara Broughton's garden is proof that good things come in small packages.

Her central city garden is small, but contains fruit trees and an extensive vegetable garden - as well as enough flowers to make the garden look inviting and attractive.

The back door of the house leads on to a massive wooden deck, with a shade sail, that looks out over the garden. Steps lead from the deck down to the garden.

"The deck is my happy place. I love sitting out here and enjoying the garden," Barbara said.

The raised vegetable garden sits flush with the deck.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"Because the veggie garden is raised off the ground, it's much easier to work in."

Beyond that, there is a small but wide lawn. A row of stately ponga (tree ferns) screen the high, corrugated-iron back fence.

When Barbara moved into the house, there wasn't much other than roses, which still grace much of the garden.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

"There was a lovely tree, but that died. So I replaced it with a flower bed that has cottage flowers in it."

There are fruit trees and vines all over the garden - many of them small, so they don't take up much room. Blueberry and guava both grow in pots; a feijoa Bambino has a home in the vegetable garden; strawberry plants grow in planters attached to a wall; and passionfruit, grapes and blackberry climb over walls.

Barbara moved into the house five years ago with her mother, also a keen gardener. Her mother died in February - but reminders of her live on in the garden.

"A lot of the plants came from cuttings from Mum's old garden, so they're quite special," Barbara said.

"Mum loved gardening, and we used to potter about together."

Barbara enjoys having a small garden.

"It's amazing what you can fit into a small area. I tend to pop things in wherever I have space."

Save

    Share this article

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

Whanganui Chronicle

'Serious shortcomings' in pilot academy management and systems - authority

08 Jul 06:00 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

Health NZ stops funds for Fit for Surgery programme

08 Jul 05:01 PM
Whanganui Chronicle

$3.2m confirmed for rural health centre

07 Jul 09:14 PM

From early mornings to easy living

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from Whanganui Chronicle

'Serious shortcomings' in pilot academy management and systems - authority

'Serious shortcomings' in pilot academy management and systems - authority

08 Jul 06:00 PM

NZQA says the academy is allowed to operate 'in a limited way'.

Health NZ stops funds for Fit for Surgery programme

Health NZ stops funds for Fit for Surgery programme

08 Jul 05:01 PM
$3.2m confirmed for rural health centre

$3.2m confirmed for rural health centre

07 Jul 09:14 PM
Taihape books return to premier final

Taihape books return to premier final

07 Jul 05:01 PM
Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky
sponsored

Solar bat monitors uncover secrets of Auckland’s night sky

NZ Herald
  • About NZ Herald
  • Meet the journalists
  • Newsletters
  • Classifieds
  • Help & support
  • Contact us
  • House rules
  • Privacy Policy
  • Terms of use
  • Competition terms & conditions
  • Our use of AI
Subscriber Services
  • Whanganui Chronicle e-edition
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Subscribe to the Whanganui Chronicle
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven Car Guide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • NZME Events
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP