There is a garden in every childhood, an enchanted place where colours are brighter, the air softer and the morning more fragrant than ever again……Elizabeth Lawrence

(I know this is taking some time to complete, unlike the trip that flew by way too quickly, but in between editing the photos, I’ve had some other important stuff to do. I’m dividing this day into two parts as there was way too much to see and do to put it all in one day. The photo gallery would go on forever.)

On Monday morning, after the huge weekend away we’d experienced, we got up and prepared to go to Hamilton Gardens. This would be my last full day here and the trip has gone way too quickly, but I’ve seen so much in such a short time. I wasn’t sure what we were about to see and honestly, I expected your usual botanical gardens which are always beautiful. I was looking forward to seeing the flora native to New Zealand. I was not expecting what I saw. Nor was I expecting the price!

Now before you think it was expensive, it was the exact opposite. It was free entry. I couldn’t believe that an attraction of this calibre was free to enter. I believe that as of next year it will cost $20 for out of town visitors to enter but locals will still have free entry. In my humble opinion, even that is way too cheap for this magnificent attraction. You can pay for a guided tour, though these are still way cheaper than expected. I would happily have paid an entry fee to go toward the upkeep and maintenance of what is simply one of the most beautiful gardens I have ever seen in my lifetime. What an experience.

Set alongside the Waikato River, the area has had a varied past. It has been home of Ngaati Wairere chief Haanui and was a centre of horticulture with crops along the river. After European settlement, it was used as a rifle range, a dog dosing strip (where dogs were treated for tapeworms, I believe), a sand quarry, a go-cart track and even the city’s rubbish dump. It’s unfathomable seeing this place of beauty now, that this area was a tip as recently as the 1960’s.

Owned and managed by the Hamilton City Council,  it explores the relationships between people and plants, telling the story of gardens through different civilisations spread over 58 hectares. Hamilton Gardens is home to Te Parapara – New Zealand’s first traditional Maori garden. There is also a sustainable garden, herb and kitchen gardens, tropical, fantasy, surrealist, modernist, minimalist, Tudor, Italian Renaissance, Ancient Egyptian, Indian Char Bagh, Japanese Contemplation, Chinese Scholars, English Flower, Mansfield and Concept gardens and I may have missed some out. There are also new gardens to come. If you can’t find something to love amongst all these gardens, you obviously hate nature.

As if that’s not enough to be grateful for,  the food grown here is shared between the on site cafe (which is fantastic, by the way) and a local food charity, which means the community of Hamilton benefit from the magnificent crops grown there. If only more places had this much forethought.

The gardens are strewn with beautiful sculptures and art, each in keeping with the particular theme of the individual garden area. And each area is a little paradise all of it’s own. You walk through hedged entries which do not give any clue, other than the signage, as to what you will encounter. Then bammm, you’ve walked into a world which explodes with colour and beauty. Each time I walked into a garden I thought it couldn’t get any better, then the next would prove me wrong.

Having just done an exhibition of West of Wonderland, based on the book of Alice’s Adventure’s in Wonderland, I was of course thrilled with some of the nods to Alice. And of course, the huge garden door, wheelbarrow and garden tools especially took my fancy and it was only when people stood next to them that you could really get an idea of how huge they actually were. I normally don’t want people in my photos but this time, they were imperative for the size comparison.

The tranquillity of the Japanese and Chinese gardens was breath-taking. Water features, gigantic bamboo, wildlife aplenty… it was all designed to calm the soul and lift the spirits. Whilst I am always aghast at the way people carve their names into nature, I have to be honest, I loved it on the bamboo. I’m not sure if the carved graffiti was actually an intentional part of the garden, but it seemed to me, that the bamboo proved that it was greater than the inane human act of trying to force its presence onto it and just grew taller and stronger and thus the names grew more insignificant.

The Italian Renaissance garden was swoon worthy and I’m sure even the Capulet’s and Montague’s would have been envious of the rich ruby creeper growing over the rustic stone walls which overlook the perfectly manicured green amphitheatre. Being a lover of all things theatrical, this was one of my favourite gardens. I imaged myself sitting on the tiered, hedged seating watching a performance of Romeo and Juliet take place through the ivy and my mind was completely transported to another time and place.

The Ancient Egyptian garden was also a sight to behold. Enclosed by high walls, the area was set around a shimmering pool of the bluest water with columns and walls all decorated with richly coloured hieroglyphics and was too beautiful for words. Full disclosure here, I’m one of the rare variety of people who are not particularly interested in Egyptian history, preferring more European inspired artwork and stories, but this garden made me change my mind. It was an absolute assault on the senses but in the best possible way. It piqued the imagination. The bright colours set against the earthy sand coloured stone was glorious for someone like me who loves vivid colour.

To write about every garden here would make this the longest blog ever, but needless to say, this was one of the most awe inspiring things man made sites I’ve been to. I’m pleased they are going to start to charge because I can see how this will benefit these gardens even more. To have more resources to spend on the gardens, I can only imagine how much better they will get over time.

We sat in the cafe for some lunch before we headed home and even the cafe was fantastic. The day wasn’t over but my trip almost was. There was so much to see and do here that I think it deserved a post of it’s own. I will share the rest of the day in another post, the last of this trip. But for now…..

Happy planting seeds of beauty…..Livvy xxx