I’ve probably said before that extraordinary gardens occur in the most bizarre places. Not that Omapere, on the Hokianga Harbour, is bizarre, but it’s not your run of the mill country town either. We were on our way back from a trip to the Waipoua Forest to visit the giant kauri Tane Mahuta when we came across Te Kouka Gardens.
The gardens stand out not just because the approach is as pristine as a bowling club lawn in the midst of an area of fairly rugged native bush, but also because of the cabbage trees. There are hundreds of them ganged up around the ponds and lawns of Te Kouka – which means cabbage tree in Maori – and it’s hard to believe that 20 odd years ago, there were only half a dozen here. It’s also hard to believe the only other plants on the land were teatree and knee-high kikuyu.

A flat area with a pond has been created to provide a covered walkway, flanked by agave and day lilies
That didn’t bother Maria Goodhew, a self-confessed “roses and perennials” gardener from Whangarei, who fell in love with the steep bush block clinging to the hills above the Hokianga Harbour. Her husband George was born and bred in the Hokianga, so between them they took the property on and it evolved. They started by spraying out the kikuyu and kept finding little cabbage trees coming up by the hundreds. Once Maria had realised it wasn’t just grass, she potted them, sold some, gave some away and planted the remainder all over the property.
It was about the time when New Zealanders were just beginning to see the potential of native plants for designer gardens, so the Goodhews also planted puriri, griselinia and a variety of other natives. They haven’t been too hard-nosed about a native theme though. Maria says she plants whatever she likes and whatever will grow, and that, for example, includes day lilies and excludes puka.

Imaginative paving draws the eye towards the water
“Puka don’t seem to like the clay here,” Maria says. “They turn up their toes. But on the other hand, we dug a pond at the top of the section and I planted day lilies in the heaps of clay that came out of it. “I’d dig the hole, put in gypsum and potting mix, then plant, and they’ve thrived.”
Maria says she doesn’t spend as much time in the garden as she’d like, but from now until October will be full on as she prepares to open it to the public for the summer season. It’s open from Labour Weekend until May.

Hundred of cabbage trees, mostly self-seeded and then replanted, form the backbone of the planting at Te Kouka
Te Kouka Gardens, 68 Signal Station Road, Omapere