Designers Own Garden

Caroline purchased a large secluded property in 1998 and proceeded to clear and terrace the garden using volcanic rock dug from the site. Each level of the garden connecting to the next as a series of garden rooms, each with its own style and purpose.

The first thing guests see when they arrive is a bold entrance garden with a water feature as its centre piece.

Here Caroline uses a mix of bold textural plants in red, bronze and black to complement the water feature. Including the succulent Aeonium Schwarzkopf, Cordyline Caruba Black and Phormium Platts Black. These are contrasted with a mix of green easy care foliage plants.

Large areas of lawn were retained to balance the garden and provide enough space for children’s play. The lawns on two of the terraces provide a base for the garden with green being the predominant colour.

Bold colour is wonderful in the garden but Caroline sees colour as a bonus in the garden. Varying greens, textures and leaf forms are what holds it together.

The petanque court with its high hedges and loose shell paving was one of the first areas to be developed. This sheltered space is designed not only as a favourite spot for friends to enjoy a game of petanque but as a place of retreat from a busy lifestyle and a retreat from the rest of the garden.

Here easy care shrubs and trees with a variety of foliage types create a lush sub-tropical feel.

With rock being a problem in this Mt Eden garden more terraces were necessary at the rear of the house. Rather than try to remove all of the rock Caroline has worked with the slope of the landscape and created a series of entertainment spaces connected by stone steps. These connect to the decks on the northern side of the house making the most of the sun and its sheltered aspect.

From the paved terraces you can continue on to the newest part of the garden with its easy care flowing grasses, perennials and pebble surface. In summer it’s a great garden to relax and enjoy a good book in the hammock. In winter the teenagers of the family hang out in the evening with chairs and brazier blazing toasting marshmallows. Caroline Wesseling Landscapes

This garden is based on yellow as its theme suggested by the grapefruit tree, a remnant of the original garden. Groups of yellow flowering clivia, cannas and daylilies are planted here along with variegated yellow flax Phormium ‘Duet’, Libertia ‘Goldfinger’ and native grass Carex ‘Evergold’.