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World video travel guide
News • New Zealand • 2011-01-27
2011 New Zealand garden festivals
Throughout New Zealand there are many internationally and nationally significant gardens with vast collections of local flora - often in natural surroundings - and exotic species.
Most New Zealand towns have large public gardens, and many privately-owned estates are open for visits. There is also a year-round calendar of world-class international, national and regional garden festival events.
February 2011
Burst! Festival of Flowers 2011 - Christchurch
11 February - 6 March, 2011
Internationally renowned as New Zealand’s 'Garden City', Christchurch celebrates its floral heritage at the Festival of Flowers. The 2011 theme is ‘burst! of water’ which will inspire citywide events. Highlights will include water sculptures, topiary animals in a watery wonderland, a ‘Children are Precious’ garden, an outdoor movie night in the Christchurch Botanic Gardens, and the fabulous 23m floral carpet in Christ Church Cathedral.
Festival of Flowers
Hamilton Gardens Arts Festival 2011 - Hamilton
18 February - 3 March, 2011
Hamilton Gardens covers an area of 58 hectares and is the most popular visitor attraction in the Waikato region with about 600,000 visitors each year. The arts festival - 65 performances and 200 events - is a celebration of all visual arts, music, comedy, theatre, film, literature and food and wine, set in stunning themed gardens.
Hamilton Gardens Summer Festival
March 2011
Heroic Gardens Festival - Auckland
5 - 6 March, 2011
Heroic Gardens Festival is a regional event, showcasing the work of gay and lesbian gardeners. The 2011 event will feature 24 gardens from small city creations to large country estates. Funds raised help support Auckland’s eight hospices. Many gardens have featured in magazines and on television, and most of the garden owners will be present to talk about their gardens.
Heroic Gardens Festival
Ellerslie International Flower Show - Christchurch
9 - 13 March, 2011
Ellerslie 2011 - New Zealand’s premier week-long garden party - will be at its biggest ever with 42 gardens on show, headlined by ‘Pure Indulgence’ by international award-winning Kiwi designer Ben Hoyle. Hoyle has promised a daring creative work fusing "all things sweet and horticultural treats". Previously held in Auckland, this event showcasing modern New Zealand landscape design and horticulture is now based in Christchurch - the "garden city".
Ellerslie International Flower Show
Botanic Gardens Festival - Auckland
26 - 27 March, 2011
Celebrate nature in Auckland’s Botanic Gardens. This family-friendly day includes entertainment for kids, including learning about native New Zealand plants and bugs, pumpkin rolling and face painting. The Auckland Botanic Gardens is home to over 10,000 plants from around the world, spread out over 64 hectares in Manurewa, South Auckland.
Botanic Garden Festival
September 2011
Spring Festival - Wellington
TBA: September - October, 2011
The annual Spring Festival - the opportunity to experience Wellington's Botanic Garden and Otari-Wilton's Bush at their most vibrant - includes more than 40 events and activities. The festival starts in a blaze of colour with Tulip Sunday and features workshops, concerts, guided walks, demonstrations, amazing floral displays, entertainment and more.
Wellington Botanic Garden Events
October 2011
Dunedin Rhododendron Festival - Dunedin
16 - 24 October, 2011
The week-long Dunedin Rhododendron Festival offers about 50 events, including wine and food tastings, visual art, garden tours and demonstrations. Dunedin has an ideal climate for rhododendrons and azaleas which thrive in private gardens, as well as three gardens of 'national significance' - Dunedin Botanic Gardens, Larnach Castle, and Glenfalloch Woodland gardens.
Dunedin Rhododendron Festival
Taranaki Rhododendron and Garden Festival - New Plymouth
28 October - 6 November, 2011
One of New Zealand's longest-running garden festivals, the Taranaki Rhododendron and Garden Festival celebrated 23 years in 2010 with guided walks, celebrity speakers, workshops and 50 open gardens, including 16 gardens of 'regional' and 'national significance'. Located throughout the Taranaki region, festival gardens have been assessed by the New Zealand Gardens Trust for design, plants and planting, maintenance, construction and overall impression.
Taranaki Rhododendron & Garden Festival
November 2011
Hunter's Garden Marlborough - Blenheim
2 - 6 November, 2011
Hunter’s Garden Marlborough is set in a region renowned internationally for its sauvignon blanc wines. This five-day festival showcases some of the best gardens in the region, with tours from the plains to the secluded inlets of the Marlborough Sounds. The festival includes an annual art auction, workshops, a garden fete and degustation dinner in a vineyard setting.
Hunter's Garden Marlborough
Auckland Flower Show - Auckland
18 - 21 November, 2011
The Auckland Flower Show 2011 will include exhibition gardens, courtyard gardens themed ‘urban sanctuary’, Kiwi back gardens themed ‘global village’, colourful planted borders and a horticultural avenue. The festival - first held in 1994 and modelled on the Chelsea Flower Show - is held at Alexandra Park.
Auckland Flower Show
Pohutukawa Festival - Coromandel Peninsula
18 November - 4 December, 2011
The Pohutukawa Festival is a celebration of New Zealand's native Christmas tree, with art exhibitions, open gardens, concerts and a café crawl through this picturesque coastal region. The highlight is the Whangamata Jazz Festival, featuring top Kiwi entertainers and garden tours.
Pohutukawa Festival
Timaru Festival of Roses - Timaru
23 - 27 November, 2011
Timaru's annual Festival of the Roses will be a feast of colour, entertainment, inspiration and celebration of one of nature's most celebrated beautiful blooms. Highlights include the self-drive tour of spectacular local gardens showcasing lush and covetable roses.
Timaru Festival of Roses
Great Barrier Island Garden Tour - Great Barrier Island
26 November, 2011
The Great Barrier Island Garden Tour is a unique opportunity to visit rural residential gardens on Great Barrier Island in the Hauraki Gulf. The guided tour takes in charming cottage gardens, spectacular coastal panoramas, native flora and birdlife, along with a Devonshire afternoon tea.
Great Barrier Island Garden Tour
November 2012
Bayley's Garden & Artfest - Bay of Plenty
TBA: Biennial event - November 2012
More than 80 Bay of Plenty gardens are open for the week-long Bayley's Garden & Artfest. The gardens provide a unique backdrop for a huge display of local artists in venues from small urban courtyards to rambling country estates. The festival also features a two-day village fair.
Bayley's Garden & Artfest
