Gardens across Taranaki are getting themselves ready for the 25th annual Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular, showcasing some of the country's most outstanding private and public gardens. Chronicle reporter John Maslin visited three in South Taranaki as a prelude.
The cockies love it and so do the gardeners - that wonderfully friable soil that covers much of the ring plain beneath Mt Taranaki.
While most of us see it converted into the strikingly green grass of those dairy farms, it's in the gardens of the province that the potential of that volcanic soil is best illustrated - and will be again when Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular celebrates its 25th anniversary this month.
The festival runs from October 26 to November 4 and showcases 51 stunning gardens.
Three of these gardens are in South Taranaki and all are part of that verdant rural landscape. But within each, the owners have celebrated gardening in different ways.
Ostler's Garden spreads over four acres of a 20-acre farmlet outside Stratford and is lovingly maintained by Maureen Ostler.
Her husband, Arthur, died about 20 years ago, but what he started, his widow continues to maintain with help from family, friends and the local Lions Club.
The garden has been part of the festival for 18 years, and it carries a theme of the English countryside. The Ostler garden was started from scratch when the couple retired from farming. They had a blank canvas to work with, including paddocks with a gully cutting through them.
A bulldozer created three lakes that fed from springs, and all are now fringed with a mix of mature trees. Rhododendrons and a host of deciduous flowering specimens flank the water and dot the paddocks that surround them. Ground covers are provided by a host of hostas and other plants.
Some clever techniques have been used in the garden, such as staking wisterias to keep them compact and upright.
While the garden is tidy, Mrs Ostler lets nature do its own thing, with much of the tree litter kept clear of the paths to create a natural mulch for the plants.
Lockinge is recognised as a "garden of significance" and has been a labour of love for Phyllis and John Malcolm for 35 years.
Mrs Malcolm accepts that, while her husband is in charge of providing the labour in their Kapuni garden, she's the one who gets things organised in this sprawl of woodland surrounding a man-made lake.
A mix of native and deciduous trees ring the water, which is also home to some swans. Doves are another feature of the fauna at Lockinge.
As well as juggling her role as home-maker and president of the district's Country Women's Institute, Mrs Malcolm has time to work in a garden centre in Hawera. She accepts that job has its benefits, and she's been able to get bargain plants to bolster her own patch.
Quirky garden art has its place around the lake and the walkways that take you around it.
This garden is a surprise, because it sits in a small valley hidden from view. It's only when you follow a path away from the homestead down into it that you get an appreciation of what has been created.
Rhodos, azaleas, camellias and other perennials are well established at Lockinge and again underline just how productive these soils can be.
Puketarata is a garden of national significance and has developed around the home of Jennifer and Ken Horner a few kilometres north-east of Hawera.
The property is next to a historic Puketarata Pa and shares the same stunning vistas across a deep north-facing valley.
While this garden rambles over a couple of hectares, a lot of thought and planning have gone into it. And there aren't many parts of it that don't offer breathtaking views of that mountain, either.
There's an eclectic mix of natives, deciduous specimens (including flowering cherries flanking the long driveway) and rhododendrons making their statement in Puketarata, all brought together by lawns that meander throughout the property.
Views to the north and north-west are spectacular. A ha-ha makes a seamless separation between manicured lawn and farmland to the north, while plantings have been created to frame Mt Taranaki to the north-east.
These are but three of the outstanding gardens included in the Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular. The other 48 featured properties are spread across the province. But given this trio are a comfortable hour-and-a-half drive from Wanganui, a visit will not disappoint.
Garden entry is by ticket only, and these can be pre-purchased from information centres throughout Taranaki as well as garden centres.
For on-line bookings go to: www.gardenfestnz.co.nz. Bookings can also be made by phoning 0800 746 363.
Each garden has nominated its charge of either $4, $8 or $12. Tickets are sold in $4 denominations, so a $4 garden requires one ticket and a $12 garden three tickets per person.