Go fruity in garden makeover

At a subtropical garden in Grey Lynn, edible Musa Hamoa bananas are in the foreground; Abysinnian bananas in the background. Photo / Meg Liptrott

Spring is always a key time for gardening - the soil is soft and easy to dig, and plants are cranking into action. It's also a great opportunity to review your garden and work on areas you're not happy with, or fill up parts that are looking bitsy.

Choosing a theme for your landscaping will help provide a sense of cohesion. It is easy to switch up an existing garden by making a firm decision and editing what you do have. I like mixing edibles, natives and flowering or fragrant ornamentals, then identifying a theme to tie everything together. This way you can have the best of both worlds.

Out with the old, in with the new

At our place, the old manuka hedge behind the scoria stone wall at the front was getting woody and tired. I loved this pretty spring-flowering hedge and it's lasted a good 10 years. But it has seen better days and had to go.

I'm taking a leap of faith and will replace it with a hedge of mandarin "Encore". Citrus can be a bit tricky sometimes, so I hunted online to confirm that a citrus hedge could work, and found that the experts at Living Walls offer mandarin hedging in their range.

I've decided to give my mandarins more space to make life easier (for me and the plants), but if you can't wait and want hedging ready-to-go, these guys are well worth a visit.

A citrus hedge will give a lush subtropical feel alongside the existing hibiscus Rosa sinensis, and the lush and leafy tecomanthe and puka. It will link nicely with the small food forest out the back.

Here, we have bananas, mountain pawpaw, babaco, taro, cherimoya, heliconia, clivia, espaliered figs and pears, plus an orange and lemon tree. At the front I've shaped fruiting trees in a more formal way to suit the villa style of our neighbourhood.

As well as citrus hedging, we have feijoa trees pruned into standards. Despite the clipping treatment, this feijoa "kakapo" variety produces plenty of delicious fruit.

If you're keen to embrace Pacific style, you have an advantage, as the warm, wet summer climate in Auckland and further north suits this theme perfectly.

Easy care, Pacific flavour

Who needs to head off on holiday when you can bliss out on a deck chair in your own lush back yard? Best of all, your Pasifica garden is still waiting for you each day after work.

Here are some true Pacific-style garden stalwarts that are guaranteed to do their thing with little fuss.

Choose easy-care natives such as griselinia as hedging and a karaka or puka tree with their large shiny leaves for height and shelter to the south of your property. On the warm north side, fruiting bananas are a must. For a serious statement, plant an abysinnian banana. They don't fruit, but are impressive in stature alone. The canna "Tropicanna" range features foliage colours that give a real pop and fill up space in lush subtropical fashion. Think green and lemon stripes, burgundy and orange, to almost black.

Tecomanthe is a robust climber for strong fences or a heavy-duty screen. This vine has clusters of pale green bell-like flowers in winter, which the bees love.

Add lush, hardy native grasses such as carex virgata, which catch the wind. If you have a sheltered spot in semi shade, nikau palms are quite the statement, but much slower growing than their non-native cousins. Well worth the wait in my opinion.

Plant a lemon, lime or mandarin tree, plus a colourful flowering hibiscus and you are well on your way to a stylish and easy-care South Pacific garden. The scent of gardenia and frangipani takes me instantly back to the Cook Islands or Tahiti. Plant frangipani in a pot in a sheltered spot, or Australian dwarf frangipani "Gold Nugget" which is more hardy in cooler temperatures.

Subtropical colours come alive when contrasted with background landscaping in charcoal and crisp white.

Try shell paving, dark stepping stones or pavers, stained sleepers, large concrete planters or a simple stone carving. Take a plunge and paint your fence dark charcoal so the foliage colour sings in contrast.

For something a bit different, plant a screen of sugarcane along your fenceline and throw in a Tahitian lime tree. In a moist spot plant mint - and voila - DIY mojitos in summer. Don't forget to blend some super tasty, home-grown bananas into creamy smoothies for the kids.

The icing on the cake? Set the scene with a simple water feature. There's nothing like the sound of water in a garden to get you in blissful holiday mode.

Next week's theme: romantic cottage come-back.