Three Elms Garden

27/05/2026

We will need to need to find a new focal point at the end of the top walk as these beautiful trunks will be gone 🥲

27/05/2026

27/05/2026

In the next “tree day” the highlight was watching the highest top come down off the rear Elm tree. It’s so good to see the care that has been taken in slowly reducing them down.

Next week (if it’s fine) the last of the branches over our side of the trees will come down😳😬

Todays mulch has gone to another friend nearby😊

20/05/2026

We recently made the very hard decision that it was time we said goodbye to our much loved Chinese Elms. (Lacebark Elms).

They have graced our property for 40ish years and we’ve been here loving them for 29 years. We’ve cursed their leaves, loved the bark, enjoyed the summer shade, watched them sway wildly in storms, celebrated their beauty and even borrowed them to name the garden, it’s always felt like they have sort of stood guard over us.

But now all those wonderful reasons are also some of the reasons why we decided they need to go. This is a future proofing decision.

The aborists started today and we’ll just deal with them one day per week until they are complete. There is a lot of tree to take down slowly, piece by piece, roped and lowered safely. Thanks to STUMPED TREES for the expert work. 1 truck load of mulch delivered next door to Ferndale Flowers NZ 😊

02/05/2026

A bit more progress today, long may the sunshine☀️somebody decided he would prefer to dig the holes by hand which is just as well as the post hole borer doesn’t dig out camellia stumps or other roots.

25/04/2026

Got to love when a job finally gets done. Life and the weather have got in the way the last few months, so getting this job underway has taken longer than expected.

However today was the magic day and the first section of retaining replacement is done. This nice little 1 m x 5.4m wall is looking great.
The garden in front will no doubt need a bit of juggling and replanting, and we’ll do that when we’re feeling the love to do so😊

The next section is a bit longer at 16.5 m so we’re looking forward to that one being done. There is likely to be more mess and unplanting for the next job but it will be worth it.

06/04/2026

It’s been a bit of a cruise through summer in the garden with nearly enough rain to not have toooooo much watering to do. A forced injury (Shane this time) meant the replacement retaining wall didnt get going but should do soon.

The outdoor Authentic Oven Limited has had lots of use though and we’ve had a lot of fun cooking pizzas, roast meat and veggies, puddings and other bits and pieces. It’s been a lot of fun.

So tonight you get food photos not gardening but we’ll be back into the garden jobs soon with slighter cooler days and lots of autumn jobs to do.

11/02/2026

If you love fresh cut flowers, pop up to Ferndale Flowers NZ flower cart and get yourself a treat. Claire grows lovely flowers right next door to us.

If you’ve visited us at Three Elms you’ll know where to go🙂

01/01/2026

It’s been nice to slow down for a week, chill out and get the outdoor oven running and pizza routine a bit more organised. Weve been trialling the temperatures and cooking roast meats. We cooked a very nice slow cooked lamb on Xmas Eve for Xmas lunch and there’s a chook going in shortly tonight. We are playing with a different thing each time we lite her up! It’s a fun toy and a great way to slow down….. and not a lot of gardening getting done.

Authentic Oven Limited

29/12/2025

Our three beautiful Chinese Elms (or Lace Bark Elms) dominate our property, mainly for the good but they are due for some work again soon.

This video is after tea yesterday, they are pretty impressive to watch in the