For gardens
| For is my England there? Ah, no. Gone is my England, long ago, Leaving me tender joys, Sweet unforgotten fragrance, names Of wrinkled men and grey-haired dames, To me still girls and boys. William Bember Reeves (1857-1932) |
Wilsons Mill
Wilson's Mill Garden is one of the larger New Zealand gardens open to the public. Situated on the outskirts of Christchurch in a flat rural area, it is named after an original flax mill, the flax now replaced by deer and cattle in adjoining paddocks.
This is a sixteen-acre private family garden of strong design with water, trees and lawns giving a feeling of great tranquility. The more structured areas near the house are brimming with plants of many varieties including roses and perennials, while in the woodland and park areas there is underplanting of rhododendrons and other shrubs.
The owners, Alan and Ann Izard, began developing their garden in 1987. Strong lines define the structure, with Alan's favourite trees providing shelter from prevailing winds, framing vistas and forming axes. Ann's exuberant plantings soften these lines and provide seasonal colour, with apricots and yellows in profusion, punctuated with accent colours. The Wilsons Mill house with its neo-classic style is of architectural interest.
An avenue of native cabbage trees (Cordyline australis) leads from the entrance courtyard to a lake, where waterfowl swim among lilies and fountain (Photo 1). Gunneras edge the banks beside a grape and rose pergola walk. A colonnade of classical pillars is echoed by rows of columnar trees and clipped hedges such as hornbeam and low box. The westerly axis from the house and lake is extended by an avenue of Tasman poplars, divided by the long lawn to the Mound beyond (Photo 2). Two fastigiate oaks and a golden gleditsia are the focal points of the northerly axis of leyland cypress. Ginkgo biloba lining the driveway turn golden in autumn, and the pin oak grove turns scarlet. Clematis climbs through many of the maturing trees, underplanted with rhododendrons and other shrubs. Flowering cherries steal the show in spring. Hundreds of roses take centre stage in summer. Enclosed in a circle of cypress hedging, a rose arbour is the central focal point of a formal peony garden edged with catmint (Photo 3).