HERITAGE CALLS

A history devotee creates a flower-filled cottage garden to complement a pretty country villa

A history lover creates a flowerfilled cottage garden in central Hawke’s Bay.

When Amber and Istvan Lengyel moved from a modern, low-maintenance property in the Havelock North hills to their heritage home in the Central Hawke’s Bay village of Ongaonga three years ago, the decision was driven by two of Amber’s life-long passions – history and gardening. “I wanted to get back to my villa roots and I wanted more land so I could return to cottage gardening, big full-on gardening, to really get my fingers in the soil,” she says.

At more than half a hectare, the section certainly had enough soil for Amber to play around with, but it came with challenges. “When we came out here the house was a mess, the gardens were a mess and the coach house was a big mess,” Amber says.

The first priority was making the property safe, with new guttering, rewiring, and pruning and removing trees. Amber had renovated older houses before so the couple took the inevitable hiccups in their stride. While restoring the crumbling coach house, they realised the extent of the borer damage meant they couldn’t go ahead with their original plan to convert it into accommodation.

As a project and change management consultant Amber has a knack for embracing new opportunities, so turned the coach house into a multifunctional garden room instead. One half will provide space for essential oil copper stills, a garden design service and the eco-gardening workshops Amber is developing. The other side is The Coach House Garden Rooms shop selling garden-themed artisanal products. The garden also opens for local events such as the Central Hawke’s Bay Spring Fling.

The couple lived in England for several years (Istvan is Hungarian; Amber is a Kiwi), spending most weekends visiting gardens and historic sites in Britain and Europe that have significantly influenced Amber’s gardening style. Joining the Ongaonga Historical Society has given her the opportunity to pursue her love of the past: “Understanding kinship, community and connection is important for my journey,” she says.

Her fascination with the old days doesn’t mean Amber sticks to the old rules. A big part of her vision is to subvert traditional gardening ideas by pushing the boundaries between formality and wilderness.

Scattered sweet peas and rambling ‘Albertine’ heritage roses mingle among arches, box hedging, and standard lavenders. ‘Alba’ and ‘Typica’ rugosa roses are underplanted with daffodils and poppies. “I go to weed under there and then I see the bees and butterflies and bugs. It’s really cool to see that happening, so I leave them alone,” Amber says. She has a no-spray policy

‘I am happy to work in with the rise and fall of the land but Istvan would prefer to flatten it out so it’s tamed’

for weeds, pests and disease management. Beer, eggshells and copper conduit are used for slug and snail control, and she uses soapy water on aphids before removing them by hand.

Cardboard held down with rocks and pieces of wood was used as weed matting to kill off the grass for the long cottage border, causing consternation among visiting tradesmen. “It took about five months and they kept asking me what sort of garden it was. There are probably still remnants of cardboard in there,” she says.

Although she has plant knowledge from high school horticulture classes, practical wisdom handed down from both of her grandmothers and her own experience to draw on, there is always more to learn. Adjusting to the harsh climate after many years of frost-free gardening was a shock. “I’ve been taught a few nasty lessons by nature,” Amber says. There have been many disheartening losses, including lavenders and three beautiful plumbago topiaries.

The garden also lies on top of an old riverbed so the soil is variable – some areas have rich fertile topsoil and in other areas it’s just stones and rocks. Says Amber: “The ground is also uneven. I am happy to work in with the rise and fall of the land but Istvan would prefer to flatten it out so it’s tamed and orderly.”

Once the two glasshouses, which Istvan built himself from reclaimed materials, are finished they will be used for over-wintering plants in pots. One of the first residents will be a new Seville orange that Amber plans to get established in a pot before planting out. “Citrus are hard to start here, but once they have their feet in the ground they are pretty good,” she says.

Istvan knew from the planning stages that, along with the greenhouses, he also wanted to build Amber a 20m-long pergola that arches over a grass walkway. He helps out with some of the bigger gardening jobs but with a demanding career as an AI robotics lecturer, and a self-confessed lack of a green thumb, Amber does most of the work in the garden.

That suits her hands-on gardening approach but she says: “Occasionally it’s nerve-racking, balancing the tension between maintaining the enjoyment and it just becoming a job.”

So, when all the garden projects are completed will she then have time to sit back and enjoy her creation?

Amber laughs and says, “Maybe, but I’ve been thinking, once I’m finished I might get bored.”