Jacque Tucker: Eden Garden, and a taste of the tropics

Publish Date: Sun, 19 Jun 2016, 9:15am

There’s nothing like a visit to your favourite local garden or park to help you get inspired about your own patch. At this time of year it’s also a great way to see what’s looking its best so you can steal ideas for your own garden.

Yesterday I went for a stroll around Auckland’s iconic Eden Garden, which truly is a garden for all seasons. The site is an old abandoned quarry on the slopes of Mt. Eden, which a team of volunteers decided to get planting and turn into something special. 45 years on it’s now a magical spot with paths that wend their way around the quarry past some amazing plant collections, mature trees, ponds and waterfalls, and some great vistas over Auckland city. Another cool thing is that they have plants for sale, and they are all plants that you can see growing in the garden. Eden Garden is open all year round, closed on Christmas Day, Omana Road in Epsom, with a lovely café and plenty of seating and wheelchair access.

The vireya rhododendrons were looking pretty spectacular!

HOW TO GROW VIREYAS

They need a frost free site, so if you live in a frosty spot you can plant them under tree canopies or eaves to protect them.
Good drainage is crucial. They’re naturally epiphytes, which means they don’t need to be planted deep in soil but are happy perching in tree branches and it pockets of soil on slopes. So that gives you an indication of how to plant them – add lots of free draining bark to your soil (heavy damp clay will kill them!), or else mound up your soil and plant into that. A classic way to grow them is planted into a ponga ring so the roots get into the soil beneath.
They’re best in light shade to full sun, but not full-on scorching out-in-the-open sunshine…morning sun is best. You’ll need to keep an eye on them to make sure they don’t get too dry if they’re in a really sunny spot.
Feed them a couple of times of year after flowering, so they can prepare for the next floral burst.
Vireyas can get a wee bit leggy, so prune them by pinching out the new growing tips with your fingers to keep the plant bushy and compact. Dead head after flowering to keep the show going.