Hedging is a major feature. Teucrium and euonymus both define separate areas and shine in their own right
Marielle Haringa and Andrew Dusseldorp’s Tauranga garden began as an almost blank page. Grass, tall hedging, a conifer and a few camellias told a less than exciting story. In contrast, the garden of today is a homage to simplicity and formal style.
It surrounds a 1950s two-storeyed stucco home on a corner site that enjoys water views. But, Marielle recalls, when she first clapped eyes on the property a “giant hedge” did a sterling job of blocking any views – either in or out. “You couldn’t see the house, and from the house you couldn’t see the view. The hedge was 4m high by 3m deep. Andrew said it was like living in the countryside. There had to be change.”
Change number one involved replacing the hedge with a solid wall to match their home’s exterior, topped with wrought iron detailing. Its height ensures passers-by cannot easily look in, but Marielle and Andrew can now enjoy their lovely harbour view.
Then came planting decisions, guided by the concept of a garden that was “modern yet traditional in character”, Marielle says.
“I like simplicity. If we introduced too many plants it would dilute the message. As for colours, green and white are my favourites for the garden… although some lavender hues have crept in.”
Those green, white and lavender plants that repeatedly appear are star jasmine, agapanthus, teucrium,
Dietes grandiflora, bay laurels, white dwarf hydrangeas, white camellias, French lavender and conifers.
Hedging forms a major part of the green colour scheme here. Marielle and Andrew have opted for a mix of emerald green teucrium and euonymus hedging – the latter chosen because it is faster-growing than buxus, she says. They have been used both to define separate areas, and to shine in their own right. A case in point is a seated area where the iris-like Dietes grandiflora is sandwiched between rows of teucrium and euonymus, under the watchful eye of three standardised bay laurels. The laurels were initially shaped as balls, but have been flattened, Marielle says, to screen part of the wall and form a kind of floating hedge. Two terracotta egg sculptures sitting in river stones complete this section of the garden.
One of the property’s original conifers is a key feature along the same boundary. “It was right to the ground, but over the years we have trained it so the foliage begins above head-height. This has opened access to the garden shed and meant we could create a square garden below.
“White baby hydrangea live here and what I love about that is they introduce seasonality to the gardens as they signal differing seasons,” Marielle enthuses.