Native plants for Auckland gardens

Harakeke Flax

They provide shade, shelter and habitat for birds and insects. They can also help create a beautiful, low-maintenance garden, given a good start and some basic care.

Planning

• Get to know your garden - the moist places, the dry places, the sunny places and the windy places. Knowing these conditions will help you select the plants most suited to your garden
• Have a planting plan in mind if you're planting a large area. Part of this plan will include thinking about the right time of year to plant and selecting the right quantity of suitable plants
• Size matters. When selecting native trees for the garden it is important to consider the ultimate size and shape of the tree. Large, spreading specimen trees are best reserved for spacious garden or lawn areas. Too often people have to remove or prune healthy trees because they've outgrown the space available. Also, check with your local council about tree protection rules, as they will affect how you manage trees as they grow larger.

Planting tips

• Prepare the site where you want to plant. Remove weeds
• Hot, sunny or windy days can dry out small plants so avoid planting during this kind of weather
• If you plant your plants close enough together (e.g. 1m for shrubs), they can suppress weeds by shading them out
• Mulching around the plants will help to stop weeds coming back and help the soil retain moisture
• For the details on how to plant natives to ensure the best chance of survival, read the Good Start Planting Guide.

What to plant and where

• Pots, planters and decks: nikau, cabbage tree, astelia, carex grasses, taurepo, kowhai, koromiko, Poor Knights lily
• Pergolas, screens, trellises: kaihua (NZ jasmine), tecomanthe, clematis, rata, kohia (passion vine)
• Fences: koromiko, kohuhu, karo, korokio, puka, rengarenga lily
• Hedges: mapou, taupata, totara, karo, hangehange, korokio
• Garages/carports: tree ferns, cabbage tree, small flax and native climbers
• Driveway: cabbage tree, mapou, toetoe, flax, rengarenga lily
• Rockery/lava field: Kirk's daisy, astelia, rangiora, puka, flax, carex, kawakawa
• Front porch and along paths: perfumed plants such as hangehange, kohuhu, toropapa, mahoe, mairehau, kaihua (NZ jasmine) rangiora and clematis
• Specimen trees: pohutukawa, kauri, puriri and titoki make wonderful feature trees if you have lots of room
• Damp wet places: flax, purei, cabbage tree, swamp astelia, houhere, oioi, swamp kiokio, putaputaweta
• Shady places: ponga, wheki, ramarama, hangehange, most ferns, kotukutuku, houhere, taurepo
• Windy, dry places: manuka, kanuka, flax, astelia, kowhai, toetoe, carex.

Ngaio Fruit

When to plant

The ideal planting time is between April and June, through to July at the very latest. Planting at this time of the year gives plants a chance to get established before needing to cope with winter storms, summer heat and dry spells. Only plant outside this time if you can tend your plants regularly. If autumn has been dry, it's important to ensure that plants are well watered at planting.

Need a visual guide to help you decide on what native plants to use? Check out our Search for a Plant page.