Pukeiti Rainforest Garden

At 400 metres above sea level on the edge of the Egmont National Park, this famous west coast rainforest garden covers 360 hectares (900 acres). Rainfall averages four metres per year. In the foothills of the Pouakai Ranges and the volcanic Mount Taranaki, the free draining soils are ash based and were originally covered by dense evergreen forest unique to New Zealand. Although milled in the early 1900s, Pukeiti has since been replanted with native flora and within this the wonderful collection of more than 2,000 different specimens of the Rhododendron species now thrive. The collection also includes many sub-tropical Vireyas in a specially built glasshouse. Thousands of bulbs in the garden include the Christmas-flowering giant Himalayan lily, Cardiocrinum giganteum.

There are three recommended walks with maps of the garden for Early Season, Main Season and Summer. The Main Season signposted walk called the 'Founders Way' connects the major plantings and spring features at the height of the rhododendron season in October and November. These are Cook Walk, a natural bush track linking Founders Garden and Maori totara carvings on Te Whare Taonga with the main plantings (Photo 1); Stead Block, devoted to New Zealand raised rhododendrons, camellias and other ornamentals; Hybrid Block, the first major planting site in 1955; Ayckbourn Walk with scented rhododendrons (Photo 2); Matthews Walk, with evergreen azaleas and rare rhododendron species (Photo 3); Ponds and Haulier Trench, lined with yellow primulas; Goodwin Block, with evergreen azaleas leading to the Rock Terrace; Lodge Lawn, bordered with mixed plantings; The Waterwheel, harnessing the natural stream water for use in the garden; Covered Walk and Perrott House, containing the world class vireya collection. Also of interest in the garden are; the rare in cultivation Rhododendron protistum 'pukeiti', a tree raised from seed collected by Frank Kindon Ward in 1953; a giant rata which is thought to be more than 800 years old, sculpture by Taranaki artists and a visual display centre showing Pukeiti history.

While this has been primarily a spring garden, more recent planting of bulbs, shrubs and perennial plants has now extended the garden's interest to all months of the year.

Belonging to the Pukeiti Rhododendron Trust, the garden is a New Zealand 'Garden of National Significance'. The trust has plans to substantially upgrade its facilities using contemporary technology to record and monitor its collections. Visit their own pages for more information.

Glossary