Aotearoa NZ Archives | Sage Journal

Articles—

Aotearoa NZ

Timber shed framed by natural planting and gravel garden path – Neville Design Studio.

Maximising sunshine & space | The pocket garden in Point Chevalier

This Auckland garden embraces the home’s sunniest corner. Compact yet considered, it is a place to pause and unwind but also meets the homeowner's practical needs.

Hands-on flower cultivation in the working garden at Paradise Botanica.

Gardens, People

Paradise Botanica | A garden that rebuilt a life

Victoria Chammanee’s 'Paradise Botanica' garden is now open to the public through Secret Gardens. Once a site dominated by kikuyu and concrete, it’s now a biodiverse sanctuary. Victoria tells us about her approach to gardening, the work required to reshape her site, and how it quite literally helped to rebuild her life.

A vibrant backyard filled with a mix of vegetables, fruit trees, and flowering plants.

Guides, How-to

How to raise a family on homegrown food

Abylene Chalmers became proficient in growing organic food and shares steps on planning a garden that can feed your family.

Close-up of a forest mushroom with muted green cap surrounded by natural woodland foliage

Books, Plants

Waxgills Gliophorus | A hidden world of New Zealand fungi

Waxgills Gliophorus fungi – some of the breathtaking, often overlooked New Zealand fungi.

Wayne Webster, Whistling Green - Secret Garden X Sage Journal

Gardens, People

Finding balance | Thirty years of change at Whistling Green

Located in Hillcrest, Auckland, this garden blends Aotearoa and Asian influences – evolving and transforming since Wayne and Rama first bought the property in the early 1990s.

Sunset view over trees and foliage in garde

Books, Guides

What is a food forest?

Angela Clifford and Nick Gill from The Food Farm in North Canterbury talk us through what a food farm is, and how they set up their food forest layers.

Henry Blakely Landscapes - Julia's Garden

Gardens

A timeless Christchurch garden designed for picking & pleasure

Henry Blakely Landscapes designed this Christchurch garden to reflects the homeowner’s love of plants and her wish to gather flowers for her home.

Gardens, People

A painter’s palette | A garden of gentle colour at The Blue House

Illustrator Jenny Cooper has shaped a soft, expressive garden around her home – The Blue House – in North Canterbury. A story told in partnership with Resene.

Lush planting beside a contemporary building with layered greenery

Gardens

A woodland-inspired coastal garden in Takapuna

This Takapuna property balances open lawn, coastal resilience and layered planting to create a calm, textural space for family life.

Drone view of a heritage estate with white gravel driveways, gardens, and surrounding trees.

Books, Gardens

The enduring garden at The Elms | Te Papa Tauranga

The fertile land at Te Papa Tauranga has been cultivated for centuries – not least, The Elms Heritage Garden.

Gardens, Travel

A quaint historic cottage garden in Ophir

Complete with cosy charm and gorgeous garden views, Ryan’s Cottage in Ophir, NZ is the perfect accommodation for your next getaway.

Gardens, People

A new crop | How a Marlborough farming family blends cut flower & traditional farming

Jo Ensor is blending family life, heritage and a love of horticulture as she transforms part of her Marlborough farm into a thriving cut flower garden — and builds her business, Tyntesfield Blooms.

One Fine Day Landscape Design - Ōtūmoetai Garden

Gardens

A mid-century garden in Ōtūmoetai with its own gin garden

A family garden designed to bring everyday joy, complete with a ‘Gin Garden’ filled with herbs and edible flowers, perfect for dressing up your summer drinks.

Gardens, People

Restoring Kaikōmako | The garden that sparked the Secret Gardens garden-share platform

Jane Mahoney shares the story behind Kaikōmako — her ten-year garden project in Corsair Bay, Canterbury, and the beginnings of Secret Gardens.

Ruby's Garden - Henry Blakely Landscapes

Gardens

A textural garden that connects work, life & landscape in rural Christchurch

A modern country garden just outside Christchurch, this low-maintenance landscape blends soft grasses, seasonal texture and functional outdoor spaces to create a relaxed, lived-in connection to its rural setting.

Gardens, People

Bringing order to chaos | A professional garden designer’s own garden

Garden designer Carolyn Campbell transformed a once-overgrown Tawa hillside into a layered, living artwork. A story told in partnership with Resene.

Gardens

A garden retreat on the Kāpiti Coast with a touch of European influence

This outdoor space is inspired by the homeowners past roots in Europe, and was designed and built for their return to New Zealand.

Gardens

The Remuera garden with coastal planting & floating ‘lily pad’ decks

Overlooking an estuary in Remuera, this garden design connects the home to its surroundings with floating circular ‘lily pad’ decks and coastal planting. Inspired by the tidal landscape, the design creates a peaceful retreat while supporting a thriving ecosystem.