A shot of Ross Neilson and Cath Earwaker's garden. Photo / Supplied
A shot of Ross Neilson and Cath Earwaker's garden. Photo / Supplied
Some green-fingered folk have well-clipped gardens, others are all for rambling growth. Some favour floral colour bursts, and many embrace exotic or native trees.
Then there are some – like Te Puna's Cath Earwaker and Ross Neilson – who create and celebrate magic in their garden.
Earwaker, a videographer, and Neilson, an artist, will be opening their garden and gallery for the BOP Garden & Art Festival. Their 1.5-hectare site called Shire of Florence includes – among other charmers – three hobbit-like houses nestled neatly into the bank above their lake.
One has a red door, one a yellow, the other aqua and the fact there are three is significant, as there's one for each grandchild and a named sign at the entrance of each house to prove it.
The named signs – Caro, Dan and Ash – are in garden patches alongside little letterboxes, and it's not unusual for them to have a wee letter from a fictional character waiting in the box when they visit.
Neilson says the hobbit-inspired house idea was spurred by a keenness to create some kind of sizeable sculpture around their lake and the wee dwellings "fit so well" into the bank.
"Plus, I knew they would appeal to the children, so I started creating them about five years ago when Caro was nearing 2."
One of the three hobbit doors in the garden. Photo / Supplied
Using repurposed materials such as old pine tree branches for the making of the houses, Neilson created the stained-glass windows, the rustic-looking picket fences and the washing lines (complete with hanging tea towels and pint-sized clothing).
The fun continued when he and Earwaker dedicated the same attention to detail to the interiors – there are beds, tea sets, "ovens", and cupboards. It's not unusual for the grandchildren to be entertained for hours at a time in what Earwaker describes as their "pretty cool little playhouses". While they're doing so, the adults can supervise from The Village Green.
The journey from the pair's home to where the magic lies travels through bushes and tall trees. It bypasses The Village Green where fictional creatures will be languishing in hammocks nearby at the time of the garden and art festival.
There are also colourful painted toadstools to catch the eye, a wishing well and monsters made from driftwood. Eyes have been added to gnome-like bald Cyprus trees and they keep watch.
One path back to the house passes a functioning water wheel made by Neilson and includes a fairy walk. There are a dozen fairy houses dotted here and there, with opening doors.
"That detail's important as sometimes there are treasures, like lollies, behind the doors," Earwaker says.
The pair have done more than create magic at this property that became home in 2007. They've enhanced natural beauty too.
Ross Neilson's art. Photo / Supplied
The land was originally owned by Te Puna identities John and Dorothy Butt whose efforts included planting an array of exotic trees and getting a bulldozer in to create the lake.
Oaks, magnolia, rhododendrons, tulip trees and the lilac beauty of paulownias have been thriving on the property for about 40 years. Neilson supplemented the plantings with native trees and added features like the water wheel, piers, a paradise plant, and clusters of water lilies.
"Sitting lakeside near the little houses is a beautiful place to be. I go for a walk down there in the morning, feed the ducks, and find it's a soothing way to start the day and put things in perspective." Neilson says.
There could be more to come. Neilson is talking about creating a mini Toad of Toad Hall manor.
He's keen to make more sculptures and has timber and wire netting at the ready.
Those visiting this address during the BOP Garden & Art Festival over the November 17-20 period will get to tour the property, view Neilson's art and check out the 1967 vintage Mini Cooper S Neilson has restored.
BOP Garden & Art Festival director Marc Anderson expects the Neilson-Earwaker garden and art stop will be a popular one.
Cath Earwaker and Ross Neilson in their Te Puna garden. Photo / Supplied
"It's a place to experience plenty of wonder and is a fine example of the calibre of garden and art trail offerings this year," he says.
On the Friday of the festival, NZ's affectionately named "Bug Man" Ruud Kleinpaste will hold a guided nature walk on the property between 3pm-4.30pm.
The BOP Garden & Art Festival, sponsored by Bayleys, has 74 gardens and art stops - 20 are art studios.
About 30 per cent of the gardens are new. They feature a mix of themes and range from rural and rambling to urban and compact.
Tickets are at Palmers Bethlehem, Decor Garden World, Pacifica Home and Garden Store, I-site Tauranga, Te Puke Florists, KatchKatikati Information Centre, Eventfinda (service fees may apply), or at gardenandartfestival.co.nz. Tickets are $40 for one day and $65 for multiple days.
