Ohinetahi – gardens of enchantment

A recent trip to Christchurch/ Otautahi offered a surprising and lovely treat.

Lyttelton is a port town across the hills from Otautahi Christchurch. It is at the entrance to Banks Peninsula – a definite must if you are visiting Aotearoa New Zealand – and there are many treats in store for those who venture there. One of those is Ohinetahi.

This enchanting garden was created in 1865 when Thomas H Potts, a botanist, began the planting. Now it is looked after by a Trust after decades of neglect and the big earthquakes that hit this part of the South Island in 2010 and 2011, and is considered one of the best gardens to visit in the country.

Ohinetahi, pronounced Aw-heen-aye-tah-hee, is home to sculptures and artworks from some of New Zealand’s best-known artists and craftspeople. Having visited some of the most famous of British gardens, new owners, Sir Miles Warren, his sister Pauline and her husband John Trengrove, set about restoring and creating a grand garden and house. Here native plants and exotics exist side-by-side and everywhere one looks there is art. Ohinetahi is a treat. Small but thoughtfully laid-out, it is a testament to the vision of those who created it and those who continue the work.

You can read more about the project and the place here.