Twenty-five years ago, the courier delivered a small wooden box. Inside was a tiny pohutukawa, a Christmas present from my husband’s employers for our garden landscape. Now 10 metres tall this iconic tree of our South Pacific Island is a beautiful herald of Christmas. Each December our family rejoices in the arrival of that distinctive festive red canopy. Christmas is coming!

Sharing our home garden in the Tauranga Garden and Art Festivals has been truly rewarding. Our garden design, seen through visitors’ fresh eyes, sparks new appreciation. We fall in love with our garden and landscape design all over again. Inspiration fires, I dream more wonderful ideas to delight the eye (and wear out my gardening husband) and tuck them away for future days. If you have a beautiful garden (or aspire to one), I encourage you to share it.

So what are the inside secrets you could use to maximise your gardens potential?