Kate Hillier, event director of the NZ Flower and Garden show, talks about the event. / Video by Michael Craig
New Zealand finally has a proper flower show to call its own again - and it's back in Auckland for the first time in a decade.
Some 70,000 people from around the country are expected to traipse through the grounds of the Trusts Stadium in west Auckland this week for the inaugural New Zealand Flower and Garden Show.
More than 100 exhibitors including several international garden designers have horticultural and floral art displays at the event.
Nature and Nurture, designed by Christian Jenkins of Australia Garden Works. Photo / Michael Craig
Highlights from the main gardens include a Bali-inspired haven filled with tropical bromeliads and palm trees, a petunia-filled Pink Ribbon walk and a rambling hobbit's garden transplanted straight from Matamata's Hobbiton.
Best in Show was The Beekeeper's Hobbit Hole, Hobbiton designed by The Hobbit art director Brian Massey.
Even those visitors who can't tell a cabbage from a calendula will find some ideas to jazz up their outdoor space.
Fire pits, floating pathways through reflecting pools and quiet seating spots are common themes, while the Urban Kitchen is filled with fruit and veg as well as big ticket items like a pizza oven for those who want to host outdoors.
Image 1 of 12: NZ Flower and Garden show.
A Moment of Happiness, Treeline Designz. Desigend by Iftikhar Ahmed from USA creates an urban sanctuary
28 November 2017 New Zealand Herald photograph by Michael Cra
Show director Kate Hillier said it was "wonderful" to have the show back in Auckland after a decade away.
Seventeen gold medals were awarded to exhibitors, which she said is a testament to the standard of the gardens.
"Some of them are absolutely spectacular, design wise," she said.
Pink Ribbon Walk, designer Norma de Langen. Photo / Michael Craig
"Obviously there are highs and there are lows but because it's the first year, it's been quite a challenge for the exhibitors to know what level is expected of them, which is one of the reasons why we have international and national judges."
Hillier has concerns about a lack of diversity in horticulture in New Zealand, as the big box retailers focus on easy-to-grow, popular plants.
But she hopes the show's gardens will give visitors ideas for their homes and encourage them to demand a wider range of plants from garden retailers and the nurseries.
"This is one of the reasons why the show is good - I think the message is beginning to get through to those nurseries. Those that are showcasing a decent selection of horticulture will reap the benefits."
ADIDG = All Day I Dream In Gardens, designed by Ben Hoyle for Blue Gecko Landscapes. Photo / Michael Craig
The inaugural NZ Flower and Garden Show has been a long time coming. In 2008 the Ellerslie Flower Show moved to Christchurch, with the local council attracted by a touted $15 million economic benefit for the host region.
But after the 2011 earthquake visitor numbers plummeted and the last show was held in Christchurch in 2014.
Hillier has pushed hard to bring the show back to Auckland. The city will host the show for three years but she hopes in future it will move around the country.
The New Zealand Flower and Garden Show runs from November 29 - December 3.
