Hereweka Garden - From Gorse to Gondwana

Suzanne Middleton, Wild Dunedin — Apr 14, 2022

When Anna Moore and Dr Peter Cooke bought 4 ½ hectares of sloping land overlooking Hoopers Inlet on the ocean side of Otago Peninsula 40 years ago, most of it was covered in gorse and heavily grazed grass on bare clay. There was also a stand of mature rimu and kānuka at the top of the property which has been left to regenerate, the only original block of rimu left on the Peninsula.

Peter Cooke is passionate about trees, and has collection of trees with a Gondwana link to our native trees.

Image by: Izumi Schmidt Uchida

Gardening was a priority, as Anna says.

‘We started the garden before we built the house’ and paths were created following the contours of the land.’ For the garden they worked outwards from the house, and vegetables have always been a priority, especially when they had a growing family. Visiting in early autumn the mature sweetcorn gives a hint of the microclimate here, a very sheltered easterly aspect and just above sea level. A spring flows through the property from Hereweka Harbour Cone to the west, feeding into an area where swamp plants thrive.

Anna Moore's extensive vegetable garden takes advantage of the micro-climate at Hereweka to produce an abundance of food for their table and for guests in their lodge accommodation. Image by: Izumi Schmidt Uchida

Onto this almost blank canvas, Anna and Peter have created a garden which is stunning in its diversity. Peter is a plantsman whose curiosity and knowledge have led him to finding and planting a range of rare and unusual plants, particularly those from the former Gondwana, a super continent from 600 million years ago that included South America, Africa, Arabia, Madagascar, India, Australia, New Zealand and Antarctica.

Anna loves to add colour, a splash here and there amongst the evergreens, and the abundant rhododendrons, magnolias, roses, flowering cherries, tree lucerne and many other exotic plants provide food for flocks of native birds in winter.

They love all things Japanese, visiting Japan several times, and the cherry blossom in the garden in spring is a glorious homage to this passion.

Peter and Anna. Image by: Izumi Schmidt Uchida

Anna and Peter have spent decades regenerating the soil with seaweed, horse manure, weeds, poultry manure and other organic matter to form a rich base for their natives, exotics and vegetables. Visiting this luscious and inspirational garden is a fascinating experience for both experts and non-gardeners. It’s a wonderful example of an enduring creative partnership where a love of plants and sheer hard work have resulted in a celebration of the diversity of the plant world. And gardening is still a priority.

Peter Cooke. Image by: Izumi Schmidt Uchida