Situated on Te Mata o Rongokako in Hawke’s Bay this private native sanctuary has been created by Charlie and his partner, Veronica, who dedicate much of their spare time to its care and development.
Thirty years ago Charlie Fergus set out to transform the hillside behind his house into a native wonderland. Charlie and his partner, Veronica, spend most of their free time together – pruning, planting and tinkering in the garden. Together they make a great gardening squad – Charlie and his love for unique natives and edibles, and Veronica with her penchant for beauty in the garden.
Charlie Fergus has been a resident of the Te Mata Peak hillside for three decades. Recently retired after 20 years as Fulton Hogan’s branch manager and 40 years on the New Zealand Contractors Federation (renamed CCNZ), Charlie is now the full-time caretaker of his one-hectare landscape. This, and his 20-year tenure as a Rotarian involved in construction and landscaping projects around the Bay, makes for a busy life on the hill.
From the kitchen window, a dense canopy of trees and bush fill a large hillside on the way down to Charlie and Veronica’s home. But at a closer look, you’ll find tentacles of limestone paths weaving under the trees, each lined with large limestone rocks that were hand-picked and placed there by the couple. Dotted amongst the dense clusters of underplanting are lollipops of lilly pillys, which Veronica topiaries into tight balls. Bright blue Echinops (globe thistles) are an en masse attraction for the bees. And a spectacular Chinese fishtail palm (Caryotaochlandra) erupts from the centre of the garden.
But of all of the wonderful hillside plantings, the wide variety of unique natives are among the most impressive. While wandering the paths of this large sloped space, you’ll find a stand of rimu, miro, kauri, golden tōtara, kōwhai, mataī, puriri, copper and red beech, and some black maire.
Growing a native garden is a nod to Charlie’s Mangatainoka-based childhood. Charlie and his father used to collect firewood from up the Mangahao River towards the Tararua Ranges. He recalls finding tōtara, rimu, black maire and mataī which had fallen and come down the river during times of flood. “When I bought this property, there was plenty of space for me to grow native trees in memory of my childhood and my father,” says Charlie.
With the widespread native plantings on the property, and the surrounding dense native vegetation on Te Mata Peak, comes a plethora of native birds to the site. When meandering the paths of the jungle-like hillside garden, you can see and hear birds flitting in and out to feed, play and shelter.
Kererū land with a thud in the puriri trees to feast on their berries. Tūī are treated with a sugar-water concoction, and dart between kōwhai, flax, and the apricot and persimmon trees when they’re in season. Kingfishers love the golden elm, and bellbirds scout out nectar in any plant they can find it in. For wax-eyes, Salvia mexicana ‘Limelight’ is a firm favourite.
After retiring earlier this year, Charlie thought he’d try his hand at building a rock wall – by hand. The limestone wall spans most of the width of the native garden, retaining and separating the hill garden and a limestone path. No easy feat, but Charlie set his mind to the task and has created a dazzling entrance point to the garden.
“I was able to source some limestone rocks from a quarry between Pongaroa and Ākitio. I admired the colour of the rocks, a lovely mix of grey and cream, and thought they would go well with the existing limestone paths. On a trip we took to Croatia and the Cinque Terre in Italy, I saw beautiful rock walls, and that’s where I’d say I got the inspiration from.”
When Charlie originally purchased the property, his actioning of a hillside masterpiece started from an almost-empty section. There were only a mere few trees, two small golden elms and one small oak tree, which now tower among the vast planting that has been established over the past thirty years.
Down the front of the property is an expansive sloped lawn. At the bottom of it, Charlie faithfully cares for two new members in his garden – his avocado trees. He grows a small orchard of fruit trees, multi-varieties of guava berries and citrus. His favourites, he says, are the pomegranate, fig, guavas, tamarillo, apricot, and Golden Queen peaches. Next to the house are two planter boxes, filled to the brim with homegrown veges, which are well covered to keep the local bunnies out.
Charlie and Veronica both have a love for collecting pieces of art, which extends to many outdoor sculptures dotted around the property. Steel Man stands proud on the front lawn, by Hawke’s Bay artist, Ricks Terstappen. A bronze spider by David Lloyd that Charlie and Veronica have named ‘Webster’, perches atop of a water tank encircled by michelias and dense planting. And then there’s Wagner the Weimaraner, all the way from Germany, among others.
Veronica, who commutes to Wellington for work during the week, loves returning to her and Charlie’s Hawke’s Bay garden as many weekends as she can. She loves making most of the region’s sunny microclimate, which has served them well for growing everything they’ve put their minds to. When the tools are down and they’re not getting their hands dirty in the garden, they relish their close proximity to Te Mata Peak’s walking tracks.
If this garden teaches you anything, it’s that a love for the land, a bit of hard yakka and the right combination of plants can make for a wonderful creative, productive and native wildlife-filled garden establishment. Good for the soul, and abundantly good for preserving our planet.
