Native Nature Retreat in Hamilton

When Zones Landscaping specialist Leah Huang decided to sell her Hamilton property, there were a few focus areas she wanted to makeover before putting her home on the market. Firstly, there was the “unusable” gully. Leah also wanted to restore the garden, build a track and create an outdoor entertainment area with a deck.

Landscape design

Following a site investigation, the design process went smoothly. But accessing the gully created an initial challenge - one that was easily resolved once the track was built, explains Leah:

Building a garden walkway

“In the beginning, the challenge was building a track down to the gulley. Once we had built the track, the job got easier and easier, due to access.”

When Leah was working with her team to create a plan for landscaping the gully, one book, in particular, provided a lot of inspiration - Hamilton City’s Gully Restoration Guide. This also helped Leah to decide on many of the native trees that she planted in the garden. Kahikatea, kowhai, pukatea, cabbage trees, kawakawa and kanuka were among her favourites. 

Decking, a planter box, hardscaping and a louvred pergola roof system

In creating the social area, Leah partnered with Pacific Powder Coating and Placemakers to build a deck, garden box, install paving and a louvre roof system. Due to the garden’s permeable surfaces and the smaller size of the louvre, council consent wasn’t required - which helped to keep costs down.