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Tickets available

This Sunday 10 November the Rotary Cambridge Garden Festival is on!You can purchase your tickets online up until the night before, or in person on the day at Cambridge Raceway, Taylor Street HQ.All tickets booked online are to be picked up on the morning of the festival from Taylor St HQ (Cambridge Raceway,1 Taylor Street, Cambridge). If you're in Cambridge, you can purchase tickets from Amber Garden Centre, Peake Road. They are open on Sundays so you can buy your ticket even on the day.Tickets ...

Special Notice

Take a moment to read this important garden update regarding Garden 11 and how to gain access.Garden 11 is one of the feature gardens in this year’s Festival.  This signature garden is not to be missed. Please note that due to no suitable parking at Garden 11, we are putting on free shuttles which will run continuously throughout the day. The garden is a short 5-minute drive from the Festival Hub where our shuttles will pick up and return Festival patrons to enjoy this garden. T...

Week 11 - Meet Garden 1

Jan and Bill have created this “Country Garden” over the last 22 years. This is a garden packed with hydrangeas, maples, hostas, and many other interesting features. It is an inspiration so make sure you save plenty of time to wander through the property as there’s so much to see and enjoy including the unique and fascinating garden art and structures. From a bare fenced farm acre, the garden was begun in 2002, following the house build. Jan’s collection of 185+ different hydra...

Week 10 - Garden 3

When Sally and John built their new home in Thornton Road they brought a few special plants with them from their previous property. Their aim was to create a low maintenance garden that suited their desire to have an easy care self-maintaining garden that was nice to look at.An old bungalow was on the property. This was removed and transported to their daughter’s place in Coromandel where it is very much loved. In developing the property, they more or less stripped the garden including old con...

Rotary Cambridge Garden Festival Sponsor

The Rotary Cambridge Garden Festival’s major sponsor is the family-owned garden centre – Amber - situated on the corner of Cambridge and Peake Roads. They offer an extensive range to meet all gardening needs, so whether its flowers, vegetables, hedging, perennial or shrubs, they have everything covered.Not your typical garden centre, Amber is a haven for garden enthusiasts and novices alike.  The centre is renowned for its diverse and high-quality selection of plants, garden supplies, a...

Week 9 - Meet Garden 2

Carol and Colin purchased this property in 2023 – three years after it was built.  Carol wanted a minimalist garden in green, white and yellow.  Carol and Colin have restructured the garden to achieve her desired minimalist look.  She likes the way this complements the style of their house. On moving in, many of the plantings were removed to open up space, and foliage was taken away from the windows – enhancing the clean lines of the property. As you walk up the driv...

Week 8 - Meet Garden 4

Step into the mesmerizing world of Sally and Roger’s garden, a modern garden designed by Lynley Fife of Line & Design. This stunning garden, which beautifully follows all of the lines of their contemporary home, is a testament to thoughtful design and meticulous care.As you approach the property, you’re greeted by an array of plants grouped by variety. The street frontage boasts Rhododendron Dora Matei, the low-growing Gardenia augusta Radicans, and the textured Coprosma Red Rocks. Sculp...

Week 7 - Sneak peek at Garden 5

Garden Festival ticket holders will enjoy this old-fashioned garden with expansive grounds where there is an abundance of history.  Paul and Lynne’s existing house was built in 1877 by William Reynolds; then in the 1920s the Reynolds family sold the house to Miss Norton. Paul is the third generation of his family to own and live in the house since 1943 which was bought by Jonathan (Paul’s grandfather) who acquired the house for his son Rex (Paul’s father) who had returned as a prisone...

Discover your 'Passion for Art'

Rotary Cambridge Garden Festival is once again delighted to promote “Passion for Art” being held on the 9 and 10 November. This event celebrates passionate Cambridge art orientated establishments and artists. Spend a weekend in Cambridge enjoying what’s on offer at both the Garden Festival and the art event.  You can indulge yourself soaking up the free self-guided tour of artists' workplaces and art-orientated businesses. There are 13 studios or establishments that provide an op...

Week 6 - Meet Garden 6

On a grey mid-August day, I had the pleasure of visiting Jan and Eric’s garden. Eric greeted me at the gate with a chuckle, saying, “She’s the gardener, I’m the slave.”Over the past 12 years, Jan and Eric have transformed their once kikuyu-covered wilderness into an impressive garden. When they first arrived, they were fortunate to have some established trees. After renovating their house, they dedicated the next three years to shaping the garden. The area, originally a poultry farm, b...

Week 5 - Meet Garden 7

Karen and Brian have called Cambridge home for the past four years, having moved from Auckland where they nurtured a tropical garden. Adjusting to the colder frosts of the Waikato has been a challenge, as Karen humorously noted, “No one had told me how cold the frosts could be in the Waikato.” Despite this, they both have grown to love their new environment.Karen describes her garden as low-key but very pretty in the spring. This year, however, the frosts have taken a toll, and the garden �...

Week 4: Meeting Garden 8

Pam and Peter describe their garden as a “green oasis” hidden from the street. The garden is set out on a 2000 sqm site with a large lawn which sets off the carefully planned garden. The couple moved to Cambridge 11 years ago from Auckland and Peter recalls how they came to decide to buy the home. While spreading the daily newspaper out on the table to start catching up on the latest news, the Real Estate section literally fell onto the floor – and there – staring up at him fro...

A Passion for Art

Rotary Cambridge Garden Festival is again delighted to promote “Passion for Art” on 9 and 10 November. This event celebrates passionate Cambridge art-orientated establishments and artists.Spend a weekend in Cambridge enjoying what’s on offer at both the Garden Festival and the art event.  You can indulge yourself in the free self-guided tour of artists' workplaces and art-orientated businesses. There are 13 studios or establishments that provide an opportunity to explore the vibrant a...

Week 3 - Meet Garden 11

This garden is enchanting and has been inspired by a French industrial theme blended with large well established English trees and Kiwi natives creating a unique and harmonious landscape.  A feature is the large pergola constructed from hardwood sourced from the Oamaru wharf which adds a rustic yet elegant touch.Originally from Ellerslie, a beautiful old villa had been on the property since 1986.  With the owners’ vision and dream to build a family home on the near 20 acre site, the ...

Week 2 - Meet Garden 10

Helen and Ken have created a stunning garden in just 2½ years. It’s hard to believe they’ve lived here for such a short time, given how well-planted and inspiring their garden is. Their transformation of a smaller section into a vibrant space is truly impressive.Previously, Helen and Ken lived on a 2½ acre property on Kaipaki Road, which some of you might remember from past Rotary Garden festivals. Their former garden had a stellar reputation, and they’ve continued that tradition in thei...

Week 1 - Meet Garden 9

This garden can be described as structured but informal, however Janine, the owner actually uses the word “chaos” because although the hardscape is structured – the planting is not. Spread over 1300 sqm, the garden has been divided into “rooms” with each space dedicated to a particular range of planting or theme. The informal but structured nature of the garden, celebrates the organic beauty of nature, allowing for natural shapes, colour, and texture, creating a harmonious yet les...

The wait is over!

Recently, garden owners embarked on an exclusive 'behind the scenes' tour of our premier sponsor, Amber Gardens, igniting excitement for the upcoming event. It was a delightful morning where they met, mingled, and gathered inspiration to ensure their gardens are in peak condition for the big day - Sunday 10th November, 2024.Get ready to explore 11 breathtaking gardens at the Rotary Cambridge Garden Festival, and immerse yourself in creativity at the Passion For Art Studios, open a...

Tips & Tricks for your day at the Cambridge Garden Festival

Your first gardenYour ticket has a Garden for you to start at.  We would appreciate it if you could aim to start at that garden, so that not everyone arrives at the same garden at the same time.  Then plan your day using the map, from that starting garden.Most of the garden owners will be at their gardens when you visit.  Please feel free to ask them questions as they are keen to share what they have discovered and know.  Visiting gardens and talking to people is the best way...

St Kilda - how it came into being

Matt Smith was the owner of a dairy farm with 400 milking cows had a dilemma when the Waikato Expressway cut his farm in half. He solved the problem about what to do with it by developing the property into a subdivision with a rural lifestyle with a residential feel. It was to be free of rigid fences with no two houses the same and all with solar panels. The average sections are 1600m2. It is a a community where it is safe to commute around with off road paved walks and boardwalks arou...