THE DOCTOR’S HOUSE

- More than one gardener has loved this Wairarapa stunner.

Almost 150 years ago, any visitor to the Doctor’s House on Johnston St in south Wairarapa would have received a reviving remedy for ill health, or perhaps a stay in the hospital next door. Fast forward to May 2016, and the arrival of an energetic and visionary couple keen to administer a dose of their own special medicine to breathe new life into the historic villa (circa 1877) and its surrounds. Attracted to the property by the restoration potential of house and garden – both had good bones but needed love – seasoned renovators Kathryn Seagrave and Jeremy Thompson were up for the challenge. It meant heading south from the other end of Te Ika-a-Māui to the small but growing town of Featherston.

After 40 years of Auckland living, Jeremy and Kathryn eagerly packed up their car, squeezing in a few favourite plants – a Poor Knights lily for Jeremy and a cutting from Kathryn’s father’s prized staghorn fern.

Wairarapa was a far cry from the subtropical conditions of the north where growing gardenias and frangipani was the norm. “We took our time to establish ourselves in Featherston, meeting people and learning what grew locally,” says Kathryn.

It didn’t take long to find like-minded people in the community who were happy to share cuttings from their gardens. “We were given so many plants and that was quite special. We had no idea what some of the plants were; they were often from a grandmother’s garden.”

“It was lovely to be living in an historic place and having plants that had stories as well,” adds Jeremy.

On moving in, however, they found the back garden so overgrown, they couldn’t even find their boundary. Tradescantia had taken hold in the dark, damp understorey. Deadwood needed clearing and hundreds of rengarenga were rehomed to locals. “It made us feel good that the plants weren’t wasted,” says Kathryn.

One of the benefits of the ground not being disturbed for so long was a “beautiful rich and healthy soil.” Jeremy created leaf litter bins (simple cylinders of chicken-wire pegged by warratahs) to pile up the fallen leaves.

“We collected leaves through winter, and let nature do the rest. It brought so many worms. We spread the rotted leaf litter as mulch everywhere.”

Kathryn and Jeremy visited nearby gardens on a local garden tour fundraiser in November 2016. “We wanted to see other gardens in the area to learn what thrived in the region, especially in shaded areas. We loved talking with the gardeners – that’s the lovely thing about Pūkaha’s Wairarapa Garden Tour, the owners are the gardeners.”

Making notes and gathering tips from those who knew, Kathryn felt they were finally on their way. They knew they wanted lots of different textures for the newly cleared woodland garden. “Though we bought plenty of plants, we were also gifted beautiful hellebores, delicate bleeding hearts, and Solomon’s seal,” explains Jeremy.

Tradescantia had taken hold in the dark, damp understorey. Deadwood needed clearing and hundreds of rengarenga were rehomed to locals.

They chose a variety of rhododendrons from Cross Hills Gardens in Kimbolton to provide early, mid-season and late flowering. Subtle cream colours were favoured to pop among the dark greens, especially on a rainy day.

In summer, the cool shade of the woodland garden offered respite from the searing heat of the Wairarapa sun.

A double stand of mature eucalypts on the northeast boundary was a favourite spot for Jeremy. About 15 trees of various gums stood 80 years tall forming a unique avenue. He found the patterned bark on their pale trunks captivating and wanted them to be more accessible to garden visitors “to make way for a much more interesting and satisfying walk along the path”.

Agapanthus plants were released from the base of the gums and skilled local arborist Henri van de Weyer from All Seasons worked his magic to create a lovely light-filled avenue wide enough for garden visitors to wander down.

Arborist skills were also essential for the garden’s centuryold trees. The garden includes five oaks, a redwood, a couple of cypress conifers and a Norfolk pine. Several are listed as heritage species.

Jeremy and Kathryn recall the day they knew a pair of kārearea (endemic and threatened New Zealand falcons) had visited. “We knew they used the redwood tree as a navigation point, and sometimes they’d stop to feed their young in the oak by the tennis court. We had evidence of this one day, when we found a freshly gutted kererū on the lawn. Its chest cavity was laid open and it had been completely eviscerated,” Jeremy recounts.

Another lasting seasonal observation was the annual overwintering of monarch butterflies on the Lawson Cypress tree. Also known as Port Orford Cedar, Chamaecyparis lawsoniana is native to northwest California and Oregon. Kathryn named it “the butterfly tree” when she noticed a swarm of monarchs revisiting for up to a month each winter. “The tree shimmered like silver as hundreds of delicate wings fluttered. As the sun moved, the butterflies would shift position en masse, moving with the light.”

The age of the tree is significant because monarchs seek out the same tree for multiple generations to overwinter.

Kathryn and Jeremy’s garden philosophy is a thoughtful, considered approach to working with nature. In the “walled” vege garden, close to the kitchen, there are always flowers to bring the bees.

Kathryn’s father and grandfather were commercial vege growers in the UK and in New Zealand, so it’s always been the norm for her to grow her own edibles.

In their second year, Kathryn noticed buxus blight in the established plantings at the entrance to the garden. She sought advice, and against her better judgement, sprayed to deter the deadly fungus. When it wasn’t successful she had a lightbulb moment, realising that despite a strong desire to honour the previous gardener’s vision, the garden was now in her care – and so, she gave herself permission to start over.

The diseased buxus was removed and the worst of it was burned. Because the spores stay in the soil and can reactivate years later, Jeremy and Kathryn replaced all of the earth to ensure their new plantings would be healthy. Woollen carpets from the house renovation were repurposed outside to suppress weeds.

A new design took shape in Jeremy’s mind. It included an espaliered columnar apple – ideal for compact home gardens – underplanted with roses, lavenders, and viburnums. Kathryn salvaged some of the original buxus and “balled” several to provide structure and a link to its past. Several “glorious white ‘Iceberg’ roses” remained and the stepped rows of buxus hugging the base of the veranda were also retained.

The result was a more relaxed formal entrance that felt more spacious yet remained in keeping with the charm and character of the historic villa.

Two years on – following a successful opening of the garden in November 2018 on the Wairarapa Garden Tour, and a house and garden tour in early 2019 to raise money for breast cancer – Jeremy and Kathryn began to feel the pull of a new project. They had been sitting on a rural plot north of Masterton, and in a now-or-never moment decided it was time to finally design and build (from scratch) their forever home and garden.

Enter Lesley and Brett Hoskin from Wellington who took The Doctor’s House into their care in early 2021. Looking for a home where extended family could come and stay, the beautifully renovated house and stunning garden instantly appealed to the couple.

Brett, an “active relaxer”, and Lesley both enjoy the sense of calm wandering in the cool of the garden in the quiet of early morning. Lesley describes herself as a novice in the garden but admits she is surprised by how much she is learning and achieving so far, thanks to knowledgeable friends and modern tools such as plant identification apps.

When a fierce wind flattened the iconic ivy-clad fence that once joined the Doctor’s House to the neighbouring hospital (through an old green door), a few garden edits were needed. A new fence was erected and warm-loving lavenders and a passionfruit vine were planted to green the space.

In the woodland, a fishpond has now become a firepit, but generally Lesley says they plan to just enjoy and maintain the garden in its current form – a chapter written by Jeremy and Kathryn.

When a fierce wind flattened the iconic ivy-clad fence that once joined the Doctor’s House to the neighbouring hospital, a few garden edits were needed.