The Lych completed by Ollie in 1996 from timbers rescued from the West field Freezing works. The view from the top of the garden looks down the

Cascades Follow the path around the New Pond and along the stream flanked with mainly native planting. At the driveway look for “The Welcome” a sculpture by Don Stoddard. This marks the steps down to Ollies Pond

The Gallery where photographs past and present are displayed. Enjoy the pastoral view to the Native Pond and beyond to the sea and Rangitoto Island. Carry on around the back of the pond past the jetty and over a small bridge

Eucalyptus Half-way up the path towards the stand of large Eucalyptus, looking right you will see Barry Lett’s Rock Dog peering through a gap in the trees. Looking left you will see the goat sculptures with the Wetlands Lake in the distance.

Taxodium On your right approaching the tennis court stands a Taxodium distichum one of the first trees planted in 1964

The Gazebo a great place to sit in the shade of the Wisteria and enjoy the subtropical setting of the swimming pool. Follow the grass out to the bold plantings of hot colours that form the

Lurid Border where a path leads you through the garden and out onto the main lawn.

Rockery This lawn is bordered on the right by the Rockery the oldest part of the garden featuring 50 year old maples above the gold sh ponds. Find the pathway leading o to the left of the lawn under the Copper Beech.

Rhododendron and Azalea Bank where shady stairways are edged with orchids, rhododendrons, azaleas and hydrangeas for summer interest. Carry on along the pathway until you reach the

Temple House shipped out from England in 1987 as a commemorative area for McConnell family members and the family of Ollie Briers. The garden has a Mediterranean feel with cistus varieties, Totem conifers, and a Holm Oak providing a suitable back drop for Aphrodite sculptured by Barcaglia in 1880. Follow the curved stone wall around to the right out to the

Meadow where low maintenance shrubs mingle with fruit trees including persimmon, pear and plum under planted with da odils in spring, wild grasses and ox-eye daisies in summer. Turn left at the end of the mown path and head down hill to the

‘Ha-Ha’ an 18th Century ditch devised to form an invisible barrier between formal garden and pasture. Turn left under the Cupressus Cashmeriana to enter a grove of Californian redwoods Sequoia sempervirens follow path leading back onto lawn below the Temple steps.

A beautiful view and seat awaits as you make your way along a wide sweep of lawn dividing the Rhododendron bank and the shade garden.

Niagra Across from the seat follow the sound of water to Niagra. Built by Ollie in 1986, rocks and cement were brought in by a flying fox winched on cables strung down the gully. Across the bridge you enter a woodland area then down to

Magical Knobbly Knees these are the surface roots or ‘pneumataphores’ from the swamp cypress Taxodium distichum that supply oxygen to the roots of the trees. Here you will also meet “The Learning”, a sensitive sculpture by Lucy Bucknall.

The Summer House is a great place to stop and appreciate the views across the Cypress Pond to the shrubbery, up Niagra Falls to the temple house. Continue along the path, veer right to climb the rose steps through the

Rose garden abundant with old fashioned varieties and newer hybrids mingled with clematis and perennials to extend the interest. Find your way to the Arbour in the middle of the garden with a mosaic pebble floor crafted by John Botica. Continue up until you reach the lawn and start of the long Rose Walk backed by a Camellia hedge on your right. A small gravel path leads you down to the

Salvia Circle a great spot to view The Wetlands. The large lake and wetlands were carved out in the millennium year planted mostly in natives to create a haven for birds and water fowl. Walk back up the gravel path to the main lawn and continue along the

Rose Walk with more plantings of roses mixed with perennials. At the end of the rose walk you will find yourself under some large Eucalyptus, where on the right a path leads you down to the

Rapids. A bubbling brook which plunges into a dense glade of Californian Redwoods. Turn left over the bridge and up the stairs flanked with hellebores and bromeliads. At the top you will find the Log Pond. Take the path to the right along the pond edge under a variety of di erent Kowhai, under planted with our native Fuchsia procumbens and Orchids. This leads you to

The Lookout, commanding a distant view over subtropical Rhododendrons, Brugmansias, Ficus dammeropsis and an elegant, tall Brazilian tree fern, Schizolobium. Carry on around the edge past the log covered in Clematis Montana to

A Picnic Area, a great place to eat or just rest, enjoying views back over the pond. Here there is a path leading downhill through a Corokia hedge and this will take you to the

Sitooterie word meaning a place to ‘sit oot’ in. In autumn the Ginkgo trees glow in the distance. Carry on downhill and right to find the path under the Redwoods leading to either the Wetlands or the Valley of the Giants

Ginkgo Walk, Native Patch, Wetlands which is home to many birds and mostly native plants. This will add another hour to your journey. Otherwise follow the path leading back into the Redwoods named

The Valley of the Giants under- planted with Clivia miniata which flower spectacularly in early October. This walk terminates at the

Stump a home for Tillandsias and other small Bromeliads. Walk up the stairs to find yourself back in the heart of the garden.