Vine weeds, vine weeds, and more vine weeds...
If your garden seems to have disappeared somewhere under an unfamiliar...or all-too-familiar...mass, now is the time to reclaim it. And don't worry, in most cases it CAN be reclaimed, once you know what's going on in the jungle.
The explosion of moth plant pods in the neighbourhood, each burst pod's thousands of tiny seeds blown on the wind, means almost every garden is likely to have at least a seedling or two...and many have thousands. Easy to pull out as seedlings or very young vines, but hard to spot as they hug fences and trees to climb into the leafy canopy, where they match the greenery and hide their seed-filled pods.
Ivy is often unrecognised when mature, as it has a different shape and colour of leaf from the familiar dark green leaf. It also has hanging bunches of flowers which turn to little black berries, loved by blackbirds who deposit the seeds at their next stop.
Japanese honeysuckle also has little black berries, spread by birds in the same manner. These seedlings are becoming more common, and start new honeysuckle invasions as far as the birds' feeding rounds take them.
Now summer is over, bindweed has slithered to the ground, where its spaghetti-like runners, hidden under mulch, leaf litter or weedmat, will lie dormant till Spring. Runners scooped up easily now mean next year's vines will be much smaller, giving us a chance to control them before they overtake our shrubberies, small trees and new plantings.
Pink jasmine still has its pretty green foliage, often covering fences and entire areas of shrubs and small trees, emerging from under buildings, and climbing up to 10m high wherever it finds a tree.
While it may be interesting to sit back and wait to see what will be the Last Plant Standing, you may prefer to call us for a Garden Ecology assessment, advice on how to restore order without chemicals or digging, or a weekly application of our gardening service (or more often if you want rapid transformation).
See our Profile for website and contact info, call 021485994, or email jenny@northshorewilds.co.nz
Some Choice News!
DOC is rolling out a new tool to help figure out what to tackle first when it comes to protecting our threatened species and the things putting them at risk.
Why does this matter? As Nikki Macdonald from The Post points out, we’re a country with around 4,400 threatened species. With limited time and funding, conservation has always meant making tough calls about what gets attention first.
For the first time, DOC has put real numbers around what it would take to do everything needed to properly safeguard our unique natural environment. The new BioInvest tool shows the scale of the challenge: 310,177 actions across 28,007 sites.
Now that we can see the full picture, it brings the big question into focus: how much do we, as Kiwis, truly value protecting nature — and what are we prepared to invest to make it happen?
We hope this brings a smile!
Have you got New Zealand's best shed? Show us and win!
Once again, Resene and NZ Gardener are on the hunt for New Zealand’s best shed! Send in the photos and the stories behind your man caves, she sheds, clever upcycled spaces, potty potting sheds and colourful chicken coops. The Resene Shed of the Year 2026 winner receives $1000 Resene ColorShop voucher, a $908 large Vegepod Starter Pack and a one-year subscription to NZ Gardener. To enter, tell us in writing (no more than 500 words) why your garden shed is New Zealand’s best, and send up to five high-quality photos by email to mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz. Entries close February 23, 2026.
Share your favourite main crop potato recipe and win a copy of our mag!
Love potatoes? We will give away free copies of the May 2026 issue to readers whose potato recipes are used in our magazine. To be in the running, make sure you email your family's favourite way to enjoy potatoes: mailbox@nzgardener.co.nz, by March 1, 2026.
Loading…
