Celebrity pops into town
Down to earth celebrity has many humourous anecdotes and tips for life.
Gardening guru and former editor of New Zealand Gardener Lynda Hallinan was guest speaker at the Glitterati Garden Party, held to launch this year's Whangarei Garden Discovery. 2016 marks the 20th anniversary of the garden discovery and fittingly 20 gardens, rural and coastal gardens from Parua Bay, Maunu, Maungatapere, Kamo to Kauri were opened to public for viewing.
Hosted at the Whangarei Quarry Gardens on November 17, Hallinan gave an entertaining perspective of gardening husbands and children. She also signed copies of her latest book "Foggydale Farm, Jam Sessions".
Music by Sistema and Northland Opera, cocktails and prizes for the best dressed added to the entertainment line up. Members of the original committee were in attendance during the mix and mingle that preceded the three day garden trail along with many of the gardeners whose hard work was on display.
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.
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