“Rose Garden Revamp At Auckland Regional Botanic Gardens”

March 26, 2001

The rose gardens at Auckland Regional Botanic Gardens are in for a major makeover beginning this winter.

Curator/Manager Jack Hobbs says the idea is to take the best of the 230 different roses currently planted in formal rose beds and combine them with other plants in themed garden displays.

The gardens will incorporate the work of well known Auckland landscape designer Karen Lowther, whose displays have been a big hit with judges and visitors alike at the Ellerslie Flower Show at the Botanic Gardens in recent years.

“The first two displays will be a New Zealand garden and a historic garden. The New Zealand garden will see roses alongside New Zealand native plants while the historic garden will show a range of roses from those introduced by the early settlers up to the present day,” Mr Hobbs says.

Auckland Regional Council Parks and Recreation Chairman Bill Burrill says the reason for the revamp is to present visitors with ideas that they can apply to their gardens, something which is often requested.

“The needs of the public are changing. They are looking more and more for design ideas they can use in their own home gardens and advice on which are the best roses to grow. That is what the new displays will be responding to,” he says

Botanic Gardens staff are consulting with leading rose experts to ensure the roses retained in the new look gardens represent the best and most disease resistant varieties for the Auckland region.

A copy of the designs will be made available in the Botanic Gardens Friends’ Library by the middle of this month and another copy will be displayed in the Rose Information Centre at a later date.

Mr Hobbs says the revamp will be done in stages over the next three winters. It is only in winter when the roses are dormant that they can be carefully transplanted. Spreading the redevelopment over several years will also allow impressive floral displays in the Rose Garden to continue during the transition period.

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For further information please call:

Cr Bill Burrill
Chairman, ARC Parks and Recreation Committee
Phone 366-2000 ext 8179
Mobile 021 978 139
Home 263 8071

Or

Jack Hobbs
Curator/Manager Auckland Regional Botanic Gardens
Phone 267-4728
Mobile 021 585 556

Or

Simon Roche
ARC Communications
Phone 366-2000 ext 8100
Mobile 021 656 380.

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