Planting with New Zealand native flora

Picking your plants

New Zealand has a plethora of plant life to suit every area of your section. The general rule of thumb is to grow species that are native to your specific district, so pay a visit to your local nursery and ask for advice from the experts.

Depending on where your section might be situated, you’ll have to consider the following climatic conditions when selecting your plants:

— Humidity
— Salt spray
— Drought
— Frost
— Soil quality

Be sure to select the right native plant variety for your situation: you’ll have ground-covers, climbers and flowering varieties to choose from.

Your section

When developing a native garden, we all want the instant gratification of seeing it looking mature and manicured on the first day. You might get carried away with the faster-growing plants to achieve this look, but we’d recommend committing to the long-term landscaping vision. Invest in the expertise of a savvy landscaping company and map out a garden plan that will grow into an impressive work of art over the years.Set clear goals for your garden and consider the light you might lose should your trees grow over your windows. If your aim is to decorate your pathways or stairs, you might like to consider flax plants or shrubbery. For texture and colour, we have a myriad of native flowering plants to choose from. For height and wind-protection, there are endless native trees to consider that range from tropical beach-dwellers to mighty mountain-dwellers. Again, be sure to consider the sunshine, views and power lines that your native trees might grow to obstruct in the future.

Planting your native garden

The best season for planting your garden is during Autumn (between April and May) when there are usually no extreme weather behaviours – fewer storms or extreme days of heat, and more cooperative, cool evenings. Here again, you should consider leaving the preparation of your soil to an expert team of landscapers who will be able to give your growing garden its best possible start in life.

Find more planting advice

We can recommend a couple of helpful resources for you to peruse while planning and planting your native garden. Landscaping with native New Zealand plants is a truly special tribute to our country’s unique and beautiful flora, and we wish you all the best in your gardening endeavours!

For an exciting introduction to the world of native New Zealand gardening, give Tawapou’s Blog a read.

Stuff’s gardening segment has a few interesting posts about native New Zealand gardening, including lists of plants that can serve specific purposes to your lawn.