My entry into gardening was led by my visual needs and design experience - while many find their way into growing with the desire to provide their own food. Vegetable gardening on its own is by no means more noble and is perhaps misguided…..

After investigating the beautiful flowers used in Queen Elizabeth’s funeral wreath, I delved further into the emotive, sentimental qualities of plants, how they connect us to our past and act as living heirlooms.

After purchasing my first home with a garden just 6 years ago, here are some tips I have pulled together in hindsight.

Ideas and advice to approach your new bit of ground with basic knowledge and avoid costly mistakes!

It slowly dawned on me that a garden struggles to take its viewer on a journey without the helping hand of structural elements. Strong, solid accents that anchor the seasonal party plants to a space and offer us visual pleasure even when the floral and soft have gone to bed for the winter.

As I moved through my formative gardening years, I began to notice the plentiful opportunities to gather locally with other gardeners. While I have found massive benefits in belonging to various garden-based groups on Facebook, it wasn’t until I sucked up the nerve to attend my first meeting of the Canterbury Horticultural Society that I uncovered the real gold that I was missing out on.

As our weather gets more unpredictable and the need to protect our precious water resources becomes more important, some gardeners have explored techniques to create beautiful but dry gardens.

Read on for New Zealand examples and wise words from Jenny Cooper from The Blue House.

As I lament in all the garden jobs I have failed to do and cope with flooding, I uncover all the ways my garden forgives me for the delays and how it continues to enrich my life….even when I let it down.