Gravetye – an ode to discipline

What’s not to admire about Gravetye. It is a testament to the owners’, Jenny and John Pease, design skill, green thumbs and most of all foresight and discipline.

25 years ago John and Jenny planted the shelterbelt around their 5 acre site on the coast in Hawera, an absolute necessity to ward off the elements. 14 years later they completed their house and commenced on the garden. As the site was primarily a flat paddock they created contour by elevating their house and the adjacent lawns, resulting in a ha-ha feature on the perimeter.

The mature shelter belt cossets the garden, blocking any view of the outside world. It is hard to believe this garden is on a suburban site. The outside world is certainly not missed as Jenny and John have created their own world within the shelter – vistas radiating out from the house, each with their own theme but all marked by this couple’s very strong design aesthetic.

On many of the vistas your eye is drawn to a stunning piece of sculpture at the end. There is even a grassy pyramid in one of the rooms. The Laburnum Arch walkway was dripping with yellow flowers, which we were lucky to see as John told us it usually flowers a bit later. The Pleached Lime Walk and the other hedging and topiaries provide strong lines and witness to this couple’s commitment to their design aesthetic and John’s prowess with the hedge trimmer (something he was most modest about when asked).

The plants are from a limited colour palette. Roses are white or burgundy Icebergs or Golden Wings. The burgundy Icebergs looking particularly stunning against the black painted board and batten house. The white icebergs were just coming into bloom. The Golden Wings featured in a separate room and looked beautiful,  offset by lavender and irises in shades of mauve.

Gravetye was a standout in the Powerco Taranaki Garden Spectacular. John and Jenny’s discipline in sticking to their design principles has delivered a truly magnificent garden.