My garden is a north facing suburban section in Paekākāriki on the Kāpiti Coast. I have a mixture of raised beds and regular garden beds. It’s not a big garden so I cram as many plants in as I can, and use every available space.

All my tender plants are grown out the back where it’s sheltered. The hardy plants go in the front garden where they have to battle the salty winds now and again.

I have sandy soil. This drains well, but has the problem of drying out and not retaining organic matter.

I compost all of my organic matter in rat-free compost bins. I practice no-dig gardening and heavily mulch all garden beds with organic matter. I make my own organic teas which I spray on my plants as a tonic. I’m in the process of increasing my rain harvesting containers around the garden.

I’m always trialling new plants and planting methods.