An Englishman's home is his castle, but for the first European settlers who came to New Zealand, their first priority was to create a productive and, later, ornamental garden. Bee Dawson traces the development of gardening in New Zealand, from the Maori gardens of pre - and early contact times through the optimistic efforts of missionaries and the other early settlers, the magnificence and productivity of the Victorians and Edwardians and the Dig for Victory campaigns of the 1940s. Illustrated throughout with historic photographs, paintings and ephemera, Dawson's lively writing style brings to life the successes and failures and the sense of achivement felt by New Zealand gardeners through the years, as they coaxed plenty and beauty from a new earth. This book is both beautiful to look at and a delight to read.

Common Ground: Garden histories of Aotearoa takes a loving look at gardens and garden practices in Aotearoa New Zealand over time. While a lot of gardening books focus on the grand plantings of wealthy citizens, Matt Morris explores the historical processes behind 'humble gardens'--those created and maintained by ordinary people. From the arrival of the earliest Polynesian settlers carrying precious seeds and cuttings through early settler gardens to 'Dig for Victory' efforts, he traces the collapse and renewal of home gardening culture, through the emergence of community initiatives to the recent concept of food sovereignty. Compost, Maori gardens, the suburban vege patch, the rise of soil toxin levels, the role of native plants, and City Beautiful movements...Morris looks at the ways in which cultural meanings have been inscribed in the land through our gardening practices over time. What do our gardens say about us, and where we have been? Matt Morris digs deep in Common Ground.

"Whether Maori or European, the New Zealand gardener represents a blend of two ancient gardening traditions brought to this country in the last 1,000 years - the first from the warm, tropical islands of Polynesia, the second from the much cooler islands of Great Britain. Yet even thee islands were but stepping stones in the movement of gardening traditions throughout the world. Their ultimate origins lie in the islands of Southeast Asia and the more arid lands of the Middle East from 6,000 to 10,000 years ago. Every plant we grow, every tool we use, every scrap of knowledge we have of cultivation, propagation and the care and use of plants can be traced to some form of inttroduction during those thousands of years."--Jacket.

Two well-known gardening authors, pool their knowledge and experience as both home gardeners and commercial horticulturalists, to provide a New Zealand gardening guide to inform and inspire. The text is combined with colour photographs, clear diagrams and handy colour tables.

Author Carol Bucknell and photographer Sally Tagg have travelled the length of New Zealand to capture more than twenty of our most impressive and interesting modern garden designs. The result is Contemporary Gardens of New Zealand, a stunningly photographed book celebrating some of the best contemporary gardens our country has to offer. With gardens ranging in style from cutting-edge minimalism to landscaping as architecture, Contemporary Gardens of New Zealand offers you the experience and enjoyment of a garden trail, all from the comfort of your own home.

From trees to ground covers, ferns to hebes, an expert guide to the top 100 New Zealand native plants for gardens. Since its first publication, this book has been an indispensable guide for gardeners wishing to use New Zealand plants. Now extensively revised, it features inspirational and practical advice on 100 species that are easy to grow and maintain, across a range of climates. It lists each plant's likes and dislikes and gives sage advice for care and maintenace and for combatting pests and problems. It suggests how your soil can be best prepared for maximum growing results and gives creative landscaping tips for combining textures and forms to maximum effect. Engagingly written by the head gardener at Larnach Castle, whose gardens are world-renowned, it deserves a place on every gardener's book shelf.

This book offers a fresh perspective on the Chinese diaspora. It is about the mobilisation of knowledge across time and space, exploring the history of Chinese market gardening in Australia and New Zealand. It enlarges our understanding of processes of technological change and human mobility, highlighting the mobility of migrants as an essential element in the mobility and adaptation of technologies. Truly multidisciplinary, Chinese Market Gardening in Australia and New Zealand incorporates elements of economic, agricultural, social, cultural and environmental history, along with archaeology, to document how Chinese market gardeners from subtropical southern China adapted their horticultural techniques and technologies to novel environments and the demands of European consumers. It shows that they made a significant contribution to the economies of Australia and New Zealand, developing flexible strategies to cope with the vagaries of climate and changing business and social environments which were often hostile towards Asian immigrants. Chinese Market Gardening in Australia and New Zealand will appeal to students and scholars in the fields of the Chinese diaspora, in particular the history of the Chinese in Australasia; the history of technology; horticultural and garden history; and environmental history, as well as Asian studies more generally.

"A walk through the intricate painted gardens of Karl Maughan, one of New Zealand¿s most-loved contemporary artists. For more than three decades, Karl Maughan has created intricately painted gardenscapes, developing his own visual language to explore the forms of nature and the nature of form. Born in 1964 in Wellington, Maughan studied at the Elam School of Fine Arts before moving to London in 1994. His works can be found in the local collections of the Museum of New Zealand Te Papa Tongarewa, Christchurch Art Gallery Te Puna o Waiwhet? and the Wallace Arts Trust, while internationally he has been collected by major arts organisations including the Saatchi Collection and the Arts Council Collection, London. He now lives back in Wellington. Maughan¿s paintings present idyllic yet unsettling enclosed spaces, characterised by their claustrophobic and colourful atmosphere. Ever faithful to his garden subject, Maughan continues to captivate his audiences with contemporary interpretations of an age-old subject. This first book on one of New Zealand¿s leading living artists features more than 150 beautifully reproduced images of Maughan¿s work, while writers and artists from New Zealand and the United Kingdom explore the deeper meanings of Karl Maughan¿s painted gardens."

The history and use of New Zealand's native plants A guide and gift book in equal measure, this treasure of a book pays homage to New Zealand's native plant species. The Meaning of Trees tells the story of plants and people in Aotearoa New Zealand. Beautifully illustrated with botanical drawings, paintings and photographs, it shows us how a globally unique flora has been used for food, medicine, shelter, spirituality and science. From Jurassic giants to botanical oddballs - these are our wonderful native and endemic plants, in an exquisite hardback edition.

New Zealand's unique native flora includes many outstanding garden plants - from specimen trees to grasses and ground-covers. The Gardener's Encyclopaedia of New Zealand Native Plants brings together over 2000 species, hybrids and cultivars in a highly illustrated, user-friendly volume. Over 1000 colour photographs combine with detailed descriptions, cultivation and propagation information to make a comprehensive reference that will be welcomed by gardeners, horticulture professionals and conservationists. Valda Paddison, an experienced gardener writer and native plants enthusiast, is a major writer and chief consultant for Botanica's Trees and shrubs. Yvonne Cave, one of New Zealand's foremost plant photographers, is the author of The Succulent Garden and her photographs have illustrated many other books.