Date: 20th February 2025
Our unique climate here in the Whakatipu Basin calls for hardy plants that can withstand everything from snow-on-the-hills to jump-in-the-lake temperatures, sometimes all within a single week. By taking a “right plant, right place” approach, you can establish thriving pockets of native vegetation on your own patch.
Looking to what naturally thrives here is the best bet when choosing natives for your garden and landscaping, but it’s also important to look closely at what these plants need and whether your specific location can provide this.
By necessity, most of our homes have been built on the flat plains between the mountains. As our friends at Springburn Nursery say in their very comprehensive newsletter on this topic (well worth subscribing to if you are interested in planting or growing natives), it is likely that our basins were not in fact filled with mountain beech forests, as is often assumed.
“Basins can see higher rates of disturbance via flooding as they usually have substantial rivers running though; they can also have harder frosts. Our basins tend to have higher accumulations of rock from glaciers, and while this makes for mineral rich substrate, it can be very free draining. Due to the mostly flat topography of a basin they will get more sun than mountain sides and heat up rapidly, especially with no wind. When the wind comes, the surrounding mountains can funnel it through desiccating anything in its path. Over thousands of years plants and animals together changed and adapted to these conditions, resulting in a diverse basin ecology filled with different sizes of shrubs and smaller trees.”
The basin geography explains why the iconic Central Otago plant Chionochloa rubra (red tussock) doesn’t do so well down here in the basin. While some populations of Chionochloa rubra may be found locally, they’re usually in gullies, seeps or tarns up the side of a mountain and not in huge numbers. They are more commonly found in wetter climates in the South Island and therefore can get too dry and too hot when planted on berms or up against our metal fences.
If we’re thinking “right plant, right place”, this is one species that, while popular and perceived as ‘hardy’, is not usually well suited for residential planting.
Diversify your planting with hardy small shrubs and trees that can cope with the extremes of the Whakatipu Basin. By choosing species that we know once thrived in the basin setting, it helps to restore some of the rich biodiversity of pre-human days back to our residential areas.
One particularly good choice for valley planting is the Olearia species, otherwise known as tree daisy. Springburn especially recommends the Olearia odorata, which can be found growing in higher altitudes between forested mountains. With a lovely fragrance, these plants attract pollinators, especially moths and butterflies.
“Olearia odorata is a medium bush growing to 4m high. Its small grey furry leaves are tailored to dry, windy and sunny situations, with it often found growing in a crevice on a steep hillside… Olearia odorata would make a good, small, multi stemmed feature tree in a dry garden. It will effortlessly make up part of a mixed planting for screening or revegetation.”
To really do a good deed in your garden, you could also plant some nationally endangered Olearia hectorii. With flowers appearing in very early spring, this tree provides a good food source for hungry insects. Growing to a height of around 9m, this rare beauty thrives in a sunny location with some moisture but will also tolerate drought conditions, making it a good all-rounder for Central Otago neighborhoods.
Olearia lineata is a slender and elegant species that is often found along river and creek edges but also in dryer places. Another member of the Olearia family to consider is Olearia fimbriata, a threatened species that is cold-hardy and doesn’t mind an exposed site.
For greater detail on the 11 Olearia species that are well suited to gardens here, see Springburn’s write up.
While the popular but ill-suited red tussocks can struggle down here in basin conditions, Springburn favours the silver tussock, Poa cita. It is a hardy little number that doesn’t mind cold or drought. Fast growing and evergreen, it rapidly sends roots deep into the earth, meaning it barely needs watering once established.
“It will also grow foliage rapidly, getting to its full size in a few years. If planted close enough it will shade the ground reducing weeds and evaporation from the soil. The shedded foliage will start to build organic matter, often depleted in poor dry soils, eventually changing the soil into soil that can sustain larger shrubs.”
You may need to guard them against rabbits for the first year. As a fast-growing species though, they should outgrow any damage fairly quickly.
Another option is Chionochloa rigida, or the snow tussock. While it is not quite as hardy as Poa cita, it is larger, like the red tussock, and grows well here. Snow tussock used to grow at 12 Mile on the terrace before taller plants took over so it’s not just found above the snowline.
Planting a variety of sizes of shrubs and trees will allow your plants to get off to a good start, with larger plants shading smaller ones while the little guys prevent weeds from coming through.
For trees that don’t mind changes in temperature and dry spells, try tī kōuka (Cordyline australis), ribbonwood (Plagianthus regis), or kapuka (Griselinia littoralis). These larger trees are ubiquitous around here for a reason! Plant some coprosma and hebe varieties near them, along with flaxes and carex grasses.
Of course, we highly recommend checking out our own excellent guide authored by Neill Simpson and Ben Teele Growing Plants in the Wakatipu (page 25 especially: What to Plant) for a full rundown on the best trees and shrubs for different locations and the specific varieties that will take on your land. You can also ask any of our knowledgeable volunteers or staff at the Jean Malpas Nursery or on our planting days, as many of us have worked through some trial and error in our own gardens.
It’s recommended you get hold of eco-sourced plants (grown from locally sourced seed) to ensure you plant specimens that are used to life here. This will give your plants the best start and chance of survival. The knowledgeable folk at Springburn specialize in Central Otago planting and there’s also Queenstown Nursery operating locally.
If we all do our bit to plant appropriate natives in our gardens, we can help create pathways for birds, lizards and invertebrates as our urban areas expand, and achieve our shared goal of returning life and lushness to our alpine homes.
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