Surrounding a stunning black and white-clad multi-storey weatherboard home in Auckland’s Remuera was a garden that was somewhat lacking in vigour. It consisted of planting, some larger trees, and a lack of flow, character or consistency. So when the clients, a retired couple, decided to rejuvenate their tired outdoor space, they approached Zones Landscaping specialist Kate Ryan. Kate’s brief was to create something stunning and vibrant with a tropical resort feel. Set against the striking black and white exterior of this home, the planting needed to be bold yet considered to have the desired effect. Bursts of colour throughout the planting help to tie the overall scheme together and create the striking element sought in the original brief. “We used a lot of sub-tropical plants – birds of paradise for the orange colour, giant bromeliad for their rusty red colour, and lots of greens and yellows as well as rain lilies, which when in flower will create a blanket of white.” The house is located down a long, shared driveway so importance was placed on creating character at the main pedestrian entranceway to the home. Kate managed the initial brief, design phase and then the landscaping itself through until delivery, with the project delivered on time and on budget to clients who say they are thrilled with the modern, striking planting and impressive entranceway. The special feature designed in corten steel is the entrance gate and fence. This mirrored the pattern in the garage door and added a unique feature. A back lit corten cut out of the house numbers adds a perfect addition for the entrance. The clients love this look coming into the property.