No stranger to garden tours, Penelope and Tim Bunny enjoy visiting beautiful gardens as much as tending their own near the rural township of Tauweru.

A returning favourite, Evesham has been a 20-year journey for Grant and Vicky Harper. From a bare paddock, Grant designed Evesham from scratch – aiming to recreate an English country beauty to remind him of its namesake in the Cotswolds.

Braemore Farm Garden is an expansive, meandering country beauty. It begins with half a hectare of cottage garden surrounding the house and leads through open park-like green space with specimen trees – perfect to picnic beneath. Follow the paths out into the gully where there are rhododendrons-a-plenty.

This garden is a testament to one gardener’s determination and commitment to create his own private paradise. When Dan Matthews was told by his local gardening centre that he was wasting his time, it made him even more determined to give it a go.

At The White Horse Inn you’ll find our youngest gardener. An ambitious and passionate plants-woman, Michelle Irons and her handy-husband-with-a-digger Stu, have transformed a flat grassed urban section into an artful arrangement of colourful and productive garden spaces.

Dursley Garden was designed in 1916 by Alfred Buxton. Known then as Te Rangi Pai, it became Dursley Garden in the 1930s. Lovingly tended since 1972, Judith Callaghan is its chief gardener.

The Holbrook family have bold plans to convert their 2.46 hectare farmland paddocks into an organic food forest and flower farm. Planting began in earnest in 2016 with visionary Heidi at the helm.

Over 35 years Awariki (little river) has evolved from an old farm cottage into a family home and ornamental garden with stunning specimen trees. Paper birches line the driveway of David and Lesley Marsh’s five-hectare lifestyle block.

Fourteen years ago Phil Keinzley had a vision to turn four hectares of farmland into a native tree garden to bring the birds, insects and eels to his land.

Over 19 years Brett Harman has channelled his creativity into a unique one and a quarter acre section on the edge of Carterton. His gardening and house-building journey were recognised nationally when he won the TV competition ‘My house My Castle’ in 2004.

This small 800 square metre garden packs a punch. Though small in area, it’s grand in stature and finds space for a series of themed rooms ranging in style from colonial to contemporary.

Casita Flora is a stunning example of bold, structural plantings. Owner Juliet Guerrero says when it comes to her gardening style, ‘diversity is what she’s all about.’