Garden workshops
Free public workshops are held regularly at Hollard Gardens covering a variety of garden-related topics. This page has information on future and previous workshops.
The logo above denotes a Bernie's Home Garden workshop aimed at home vegetable gardeners. Click on the logo to find out more about Bernie's Home Garden
2012 workshop programme
Workshop notes and handouts
Workshops in previous years
See also the Regional Gardens events calendar for details of all upcoming workshops at Hollard Gardens, Tupare and Pukeiti.
2012 workshop programme
Sunday 17 June 2012, 2pm-4pm: Propagating and planting herbs
Now is a good time to propagate and rejuvenate your garden so come learn some different methods of propagation using some of the useful herbaceous plants in Bernie’s Home Garden. With the shortest day coming, we’ll make sure to include garlic in the planting.
Sunday 17 July 2012, 2pm-4pm: Fruit tree maintenance and training
We’ll talk about traditional fruit tree maintenance and training, and take a look at the food forest (an orchard with a difference in Bernie's Home Garden) and the maintenance and progress of the fruit trees since the food forest was planted in 2010.
Sunday 12 August 2012, 2pm-4pm: Garden design tips
Whether you have a new property and don’t know where to start, or whether something just doesn’t seem quite right with your garden space as it is, come to this workshop and learn some design rules of thumb. We’ll discuss some of the fundamentals of garden layout that help ensure that your house, deck, lawn and garden beds all work together, practically as well as aesthetically.
Sunday 9 September 2012, 2pm-4pm: Sowing a garden for kids
Bring your kids down to Bernie’s Home Garden to learn how to grow some of the veggies they like to eat. We will show you how to construct a small raised bed so they can have a garden all of their own. Then we’ll all have a go at sowing and planting, and we'll also learn about some of the creepy crawlies that help in the garden.
Sunday 14 October 2012, 2pm-4pm: Growing taties and tomatoes
Labour Day later this month is the traditional time to plant your potatoes and tomatoes – be prepared with some tips and practical advice for sowing, growing and caring for these staple vegetables. We’ll also give some tips on preventing the destructive blight. Bring seed to swap and try some new tasty varieties this season.
Workshop notes and handouts
Growing trees on the ring plain (April 2012)
Tree planting — with Taranaki Tree Trust (May 2012)
See our workshops archives page for notes and handouts from workshops in previous years.
Growing trees on the ring plain (April 2012)
Workshop handout (148 KB)
By Georgie Williams
As a pupil at New Plymouth Central School almost 100 years ago, Bernie Hollard made Pukekura Park a regular haunt for observing plants and collecting seeds.
Later, in 1927, he fenced out his cows and began to care for a two-acre remnant of native bush on his farm in Kaponga. His first act would have been to plant shelter and the origin of the tainui (Pomaderris apetala) shelter belt at Hollard Gardens can apparently be traced back to those early plant pursuits in New Plymouth.
In addition to the tainui, Bernie’s shelter belt included gum species (Eucalyptus macarthuri and viminalis), macrocarpa ( Cupressus macrocarpa) and Lawson cypress (Chamaecyparis lawsoniana), holly (Ilex aquifolium) and mahoe/whiteywood (Melicytus ramiflorus) to protect what would become a horticultural oasis in the heart of dairy country.
In addition to protecting the garden, the trees on the ring plain also play a very necessary part in the carbon, nutrient and water cycle. They also shelter and protect animals and can be used to buffer native bush from the harsh winds. Mahoe was a useful fodder crop and the gums and cypresses would have provided firewood and timber.
We took a walk around some of these original plantings at Hollards as part of this workshop, and Regional Gardens Manager Greg Rine discussed how selecting trees for your own personal oasis would be slightly different these days. Unfortunately ,the spread of the fungal disease canker has made it inadvisable to plant Lawson and macrocarpa, and the latter has also been linked to cow abortion. These previously common trees are gradually being removed from the ring plain and Greg recommended replacement species, depending on your situation.
For shelter on the upper ring plain radiata pines and gum species (Eucalyptus nitens, E fastigata, E. fraxiniodes) are successful and have the advantage of good timber and firewood. Sweet chestnut (Castanea sativa) also grows well up higher given some shelter and has lovely timber and nuts. Australian blackwood (Acacia melanoxylon) would also fall into this category but without the nuts. Fast growing black alder and tree lucerne can act as nurse crops and fix nitrogen. Coastal banksia (Banksia integrifolia) is good for birdlife and apparently its cones burn well too.
For shelter on the lower ring plain, Greg recommends karaka, pohutakawa, karo and Norfolk Island hibiscus. And in among these, plant Norfolk Island pine and Coastal banksia for additional coastal aesthetics.
Tree planting — with Taranaki Tree Trust (May 2012)
Workshop handout (201 KB)
By Georgie Williams
With the heat of the sun fading and the rain becoming more regular, this is the season to be planting.
You may be planning to fence off your planting to protect it from stock but pesky rabbits might still be anticipating a nibble. If so, try spreading sheep manure around the base of your plant – apparently bunnies don’t like walking / hopping on it and it doubles as a slow-release fertiliser and soil conditioner.
If kikuyu grass is growing up your new seedlings, cut back their lower lateral branches to just above the first leaf nodes. The creepy grass will have nothing to cling on to.
These useful tidbits were contributed by horticulturalist Ken Davey at this workshop at Hollard Gardens, when the Taranaki Tree Trust, Taranaki Regional Council, the QEII Trust and Fish and Game Taranaki came together to offer information about the support that exists in Taranaki if you are looking to plant and /or protect a piece of your land.
The Taranaki Tree Trust assists landowners and community groups by providing funding for planting projects which maintain and restore wetlands, native bush, habitat of threatened species and amenity planting. The Trust can fund up to 50% of the total cost of a project on private property and up to 75% of the total cost of a project by a community group or school.
Planting improves aesthetics and enhances the environment; you can gain timber and firewood, provide habitat for birds and other beneficial wildlife, enhance the economic value of the land, and protect stock and improve their management (they won’t eat as much if they’re not so exposed to the elements).
Once you have planted, or if you already have an area over half a hectare of aesthetic, cultural, recreational, scenic, scientific or social interest or value you can also work with the QEII Trust to secure its long-term protection for following generations to enjoy. Bernie Hollard did this and his foresight has left a legacy we can all enjoy.
If you’d like to learn more about enhancing and protecting your land for now and the future, contact any the organisations mentioned in this column.
