As a newbie, I didn’t know what to expect.

After over-packing (and underweighing) and then penalty-paying (sigh), my suitcase and I boarded a flight from the bottom of the north island to the top. We were bound for the NZ Gardens Trust annual conference in Tāmaki Makaurau for three glorious days in April.

Despite the drought-breaking deluge that arrived on day one, it was everything (and more) that I hoped for. To step away from the day-to-day and be immersed in gardens (and the humans that tend them) was for this first-timer - complete bliss.

Apart from a few local Wairarapa people, I didn’t know many other attendees. But gardens are the ultimate social connectors. And when you corral a community of plant lovers together for several days with nothing to do but board the bus and follow crew instructions – it’s easy to surrender to the delights of learning, exploring and getting lost in the gardens. Finding common ground with botanically-minded companions happens by osmosis. I came away richer for the conversations had along the way.

Rachael with Speaker Richard Neville, Trust Manager Victoria Read and Assessor Tracey Ower at Brick Bay Sculpture Park

The NZGT conference is a unique offering on the gardening calendar – the opportunity to travel the regions through flora. Visiting rare garden gems (some private beauties that aren’t open to visitors) felt like a delicious treat.

The tropical north was like a new botanical country - Nikau palms, epiphyllums and orchids were plentiful. One of the things I love (since falling into gardening) is visiting plants in their natural habitat. They’re storytellers of the land, and climate.

From the outside, we may have seemed like a diverse crowd; trustees, garden owners, assessors, designers, horticulturalists, botanic garden staff, and Friends of the Trust (like me). We were suspended in our own botanical bubble – learning together and celebrating how gardens enrich connections (with people, and place).

I learnt there’s usually a bus story on conference, and though there were tricky turnarounds and steep driveways – it was, despite the rain, smooth sailing. Journeying back into the city after a big day, we were merging into motorway traffic in the fading light when our softly spoken driver Mikey led us all in a gentle-yet-stirring chorus of Pōkarekare ana.

The lava cave at the Jacob Garden in Auckland

Another keep-sake was the sound and feel of rain in the coastal forest at Ōmaio on the Takatu Peninsula. To reach the garden we descended on foot along a narrow winding path through the bush. Like forest slippers the path was soft and springy. It silenced the chatter – as we slowly wound down into the bush. Thoughtfully placed narrow handrails of manuka were the only sign we weren’t in a DOC reserve.

Ōmaio – as its name implies is a place of peace, quiet and tranquility. The beautifully textured bark of a 1000+-year-old kauri made me spontaneously bow (on the inside at least) in reverence. To be in the presence of such giants was humbling. It reminded me of the impermanence of all things – us of course, but gardens too.

We explored a feast of gardens including a vertical urban jungle, a tropical wonderland with its own ‘Under the Mountain’ cave, and a tiny intensely layered 200+ species rich urban garden. Not only were our senses tested in the outdoors, but guest speakers challenged our minds too.

Landscape architect Richard Neville’s keynote address was a poignant insight into his design practice guided by a ‘changing cultural aesthetic’. Sharing moments of his life and career so far, he reminded us that gardening is an act of love for the natural world. Gardens are places for all living things (not just humans). We are offering shelter, food and habitat.

Shifting our perspective – to think like a bird, or a worm – was echoed by seasoned photographer Juliet Nicholas. She shared her joy of chasing the light and encouraged us to look again in our own gardens, and to capture images year round, in all conditions, because “everything is different each time it takes place.”

The very affable botanical legend Jack Hobbs summed everything up for me when he spoke about the feeling of a garden. It’s that connection that can stir something in us – that’s the heart of gardening.

Learning about Sponge Gardening from Mark form the Urban Jungle

But why do we conference? It’s no small thing to step away from normal life for four days, leaving homes, work, family (and gardens ). It doesn’t matter where we are in our gardening journey, how old or young we are, or what we believe outside the garden – for those four days, we get to be absolutely unashamedly garden-loving-geeks. We are connected by a simple love of growing.

I didn’t want it to end. Happily, I have notes, and musings, and photos and best of all a few treasured plants won at auction. Thank goodness for the work of specialist growers and nurseries that gift their treasures for the Trust’s plant auction. Many of these beauties I had only read about, never seen.

The NZ Gardens Trust is unique in the world, and its conference provides the ultimate opportunity to connect with a deeper experience of gardening in Aotearoa.

With so much to learn, experience and appreciate – all in the company of gardeners, I recommend the NZGT conference experience wholeheartedly. Pack your stamina, a raincoat, and good walking shoes – the days are action packed and invigorating. I came away energized - marveling that there will never be an end to learning and growing in gardens. I’m so grateful to have had the opportunity.