Is now the time to change "The Garden City" Title?
Something to natter about over tonight's events.
Since the 2010/2011 Earthquakes, Christchurch has struggled to replicate or make a come-back to regain the "Garden City" title.
There are a large number of contributing factors, land and properties being destroyed and rendered inhabitable = gardens lost for many years or altogether, during the Chaos that followed, residents, businesses and the council had far greater priorities to worry about.
Now the dust has mostly settled, it is becoming more and more obvious that "The Garden City" title can never be lived up to again.
My observations are decisions are being made that are making it impossible:
Huge chunks of land are now mown wastelands, for exercising and dog walking.
Other areas have been converted into water retention/nature and wildlife reserves, none of the plans I have seen or heard, indicate a move back to a Garden City image.
Add to this that high-density housing is reducing the land to grow a garden on and the latest charging for water usage has had a visible effect on how people keep the berm outside their houses. Lots of the properties that are still intact for gardening are now rental properties and it is not hard to see which of those properties are as you drive around, but lots would not win the Garden Award.
I am not in favour or against any of the factors mentioned, I heard chch referred to as "The Garden City" and thought if we had to come up with a new name, what would we want it to be, that reflects a new Image?
Cathedral City is out
Cycle City.....
Wetland wonderland ......
Dog-Friendly City.
I hope you receive all that you deserve in 2025
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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!
Poll: 🤖 What skills do you think give a CV the ultimate edge in a robot-filled workplace?
The Reserve Bank has shared some pretty blunt advice: there’s no such thing as a “safe” job anymore 🛟😑
Robots are stepping into repetitive roles in factories, plants and warehouses. AI is taking care of the admin tasks that once filled many mid-level office jobs.
We want to know: As the world evolves, what skills do you think give a CV the ultimate edge in a robot-filled workplace?
Want to read more? The Press has you covered!
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52.6% Human-centred experience and communication
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14.7% Critical thinking
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29.9% Resilience and adaptability
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2.7% Other - I will share below!
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.
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