The Country
  • The Country home
  • Latest news
  • Audio & podcasts
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life
  • Listen on iHeart radio

Subscriptions

  • Herald Premium
  • Viva Premium
  • The Listener
  • BusinessDesk

Sections

  • Latest news
  • Coast & Country News
  • Opinion
  • Dairy farming
  • Sheep & beef farming
  • Horticulture
  • Animal health
  • Rural business
  • Rural technology
  • Rural life

Media

  • Podcasts
  • Video

Weather

  • Kaitaia
  • Whāngarei
  • Dargaville
  • Auckland
  • Thames
  • Tauranga
  • Hamilton
  • Whakatāne
  • Rotorua
  • Tokoroa
  • Te Kuiti
  • Taumurunui
  • Taupō
  • Gisborne
  • New Plymouth
  • Napier
  • Hastings
  • Dannevirke
  • Whanganui
  • Palmerston North
  • Levin
  • Paraparaumu
  • Masterton
  • Wellington
  • Motueka
  • Nelson
  • Blenheim
  • Westport
  • Reefton
  • Kaikōura
  • Greymouth
  • Hokitika
  • Christchurch
  • Ashburton
  • Timaru
  • Wānaka
  • Oamaru
  • Queenstown
  • Dunedin
  • Gore
  • Invercargill

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 / The Country

Bay of Plenty pot holes repurposed by Te Puna prankster

Rebecca Mauger
By Rebecca Mauger
Editor - Katikati Advertiser·Katikati Advertiser·
28 Feb, 2024 12:16 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

Te Puna residents have found a use for pot holes.

Te Puna residents have found a use for pot holes.

Te Puna has some green-thumbed jokesters.

First there was the phantom hay baler on the State Highway 2 roundabout. Now there’s an elusive pot planter.

A series of plants have been placed in the potholes of a busy Te Puna access road that runs beside the BP service station, adjacent to SH2.

It appears they may be taking a dig at Western Bay of Plenty District Council to fix the local potholes.

A Te Puna resident contacted Western Bay of Plenty District Council last week about the holes after one of their tyres blew out while driving over them.

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The anonymous resident also contacted the Katikati Advertiser to explain the situation.

‘’The potholes have been repaired on numerous occasions only to be dug out again by heavy trucks and drivers cutting that corner. As locals, none of us should have to put up with shoddy workmanship.

‘’Te Puna locals know how to look after themselves and if planting some pretty flowers sends a message to the powers-that-be to spur them into action with the help of social media and local news reporting, then ... great.’’

Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

The anonymous resident who contacted Katikati Advertiser said ‘’the rest of the world may be broken but here in Te Puna, we get things done”.

A community Facebook page post drew more than 150 likes and plenty of comments cheering on the jokers.

Council transportation area engineer Ashley Hall said they were made aware of the potholes last week.

‘’The site was inspected and the repair work was added to our maintenance schedule, with high priority. We expect them to be infilled this week.’’

Ashley said there was a high demand placed on contracted inspectors, so maintenance work like this sometimes got missed.

“We are grateful when people let us know about these issues as they occur. If anyone has any concerns regarding road maintenance, please contact us as soon as the issue becomes apparent, so it can be assessed and repair work scheduled as resources become available. You can do this via the Antenno app, or contact the council on 0800 926 732.

‘’Planting potholes is a creative, but not a very practical solution. Personally, I would recommend hydrangeas, as they are a colourful and durable choice during the hotter weather,” Ashley said.


Save

    Share this article

Latest from The Country

The Country

'Stems with a story' to get second chance to brighten NZ homes

09 Jun 05:00 PM
The Country

Over 1200 exhibitions to open at Fieldays 2025

09 Jun 05:03 AM
The Country

Sam Carter wins Hawke's Bay Young Grower title

09 Jun 04:17 AM

Why Cambridge is the new home of future-focused design

sponsored
Advertisement
Advertise with NZME.

Latest from The Country

'Stems with a story' to get second chance to brighten NZ homes

'Stems with a story' to get second chance to brighten NZ homes

09 Jun 05:00 PM

Wonky Box will launch flower subscription boxes this month.

Over 1200 exhibitions to open at Fieldays 2025

Over 1200 exhibitions to open at Fieldays 2025

09 Jun 05:03 AM
Sam Carter wins Hawke's Bay Young Grower title

Sam Carter wins Hawke's Bay Young Grower title

09 Jun 04:17 AM
Rebecca Fisher wins lifetime achievement award for horticulture leadership

Rebecca Fisher wins lifetime achievement award for horticulture leadership

09 Jun 03:28 AM
Clean water fuelling Pacific futures
sponsored

Clean water fuelling Pacific futures

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
  • NZ Herald e-editions
  • Daily puzzles & quizzes
  • Manage your digital subscription
  • Manage your print subscription
  • Subscribe to the NZ Herald newspaper
  • Subscribe to Herald Premium
  • Gift a subscription
  • Subscriber FAQs
  • Subscription terms & conditions
  • Promotions and subscriber benefits
NZME Network
  • The New Zealand Herald
  • The Northland Age
  • The Northern Advocate
  • Waikato Herald
  • Bay of Plenty Times
  • Rotorua Daily Post
  • Hawke's Bay Today
  • Whanganui Chronicle
  • Viva
  • NZ Listener
  • What the Actual
  • Newstalk ZB
  • BusinessDesk
  • OneRoof
  • Driven CarGuide
  • iHeart Radio
  • Restaurant Hub
NZME
  • About NZME
  • NZME careers
  • Advertise with NZME
  • Digital self-service advertising
  • Book your classified ad
  • Photo sales
  • NZME Events
  • © Copyright 2025 NZME Publishing Limited
TOP