Meet Our New Zealand Guide
When you first meet Kim Woods Rabbidge, you notice her enthusiasm and warmth right away. She speaks about gardens not just as places filled with plants, but as living works of art. For Kim, gardens are a reflection of the destination, and she loves helping others discover them.
This November, Kim will lead our brand new tour, the 13-day New Zealand’s South Island in Full Bloom trip. Bringing her eye for detail, her love of photography, and her warm approach as a guide, Kim is the perfect companion for exploring the gardens and landscapes of New Zealand.
We caught up with her to hear more about her garden experience, and what guests can expect on this special journey to Kiwi land.
Tell us a bit about yourself… How did your love for gardens first begin?
I grew up in northern New South Wales, a very beautiful part of the countryside.
My father was a man of the land. He taught me how to appreciate mosses and lichens, little orchids in the bushland that smelled like chocolate or looked like swans, and different types of wattle, acacia, that were flowering throughout the year. So my appreciation of nature started when I was a little girl, and it evolved into gardens as I grew older.
You started out in the arts. How did that lead to garden writing and photography?
After I graduated from Sydney College of the Arts, I became an art director at Australian Consolidated Press, working on magazines and books. In 2005, I became the Queensland coordinator for Australia’s Open Garden Scheme. That was a nationwide program opening private gardens to the public.
As a coordinator, I wanted to promote the gardens that were open, so that the owners who had put in so much effort to make their gardens look beautiful, had the maximum number of visitors. Because I had a background in art and design, I had an eye for layout and for what made a good photograph. So I started taking more photos of gardens to help promote them.
At the same time, newspapers were cutting back on reporters, so there was no one to cover gardens anymore. Since I was already writing promotional material, they agreed to publish my articles. So I stepped in and that’s really how I got started with garden writing and photography.
Tell me a bit about your gardening experience. What's been the most challenging part of converting the old farm into a garden?
When we bought our property in the Northern Rivers, it was full of weeds and rocks. We have to constantly keep up with weeds. I’m very lucky my husband doesn’t mind hard work (though he does start to shake when I say, “Oh Michael, I’ve had an idea!”, because I have lots of ideas). What was once just a paddock with a tiny fence around the house has become our 1 hectare garden.
I’ve tried to keep the garden open and not too intensive, because as you get older you don’t want it to be overwhelming.
We plant as if we're going to be here when all the trees grow up. You have to plant for future generations, knowing that trees you're planting now are going to give somebody enormous joy in another 50 years.
If you could give one piece of advice to a gardening newbie, what would that be?
Walk around the neighbourhood, take photos, identify what’s growing well, research it, and ask local gardeners. Lots of people are very, very good gardeners and very knowledgeable, but not necessarily about your area. So it’s really good to get local advice.
Always be aware of how big things grow before you plant them. Literally pace out an area to see what the eventual space is. Don’t plant big trees in small areas.
When did you start leading garden tours?
I began when I was with Open Gardens Australia. I organised a few days’ visit in Far North Queensland. I chose the gardens, liaised with local designers and architects and worked with the owners. That was very successful.
Not long after, a group in Brisbane asked me to take them to Tamborine Mountain, where we had lived for a few years. It’s only an hour south, but about five degrees cooler, so quite a different climate. I took them in winter so they could see jonquils, daffodils, freesias and early blossoms. One of the people on the coach asked, “Why are all those trees dead?” They’d never seen a deciduous tree before, because Brisbane is subtropical. Then I realised that if people don't travel, they don't have an understanding of different regions. It was very funny.
After that, I was asked to lead a tour to the UK – my first one overseas . Then I was approached by another company, Opulent Journeys, and I’ve been working with them for years now, usually two or three tours annually. Some I design myself, but always the focus is gardens, with galleries and culture. The two really do overlap. On this New Zealand trip, we’ll be visiting a fabulous gallery.
What do you think makes visiting gardens abroad so special?
When you visit gardens in another country, you’re transported into a time and place as you do when visiting a local gallery.Each garden is so reflective… you learn so much about the heritage of the place, or if it’s contemporary, about its spirit. It’s like stepping into the culture, but under the open sky.
What excites you most about leading this garden tour to New Zealand with Carex?
Well, all of New Zealand I love. I've led a tour around Auckland and Waiheke Island, primarily a sculptural garden tour. And then I've done the South Island, which is just so divine… Queenstown is just gorgeous.
Queenstown
What makes this trip special is the gardens that are made with love by incredible gardeners. Each garden is so different, and all are of a very high standard. There’s a garden right on the coastline where the owner has used New Zealand natives in a formal design. So it’s not just bushland, it truly becomes a garden. In Christchurch, we’ll see borders made up almost entirely of natives, planted in that traditional perennial style.
One of my favourites is a garden you reach after crossing vast plains in a dry rain shadow. You come across this delightful garden with the most divine gardener. We’ll have lunch there in the middle of nowhere. She started without water and only managed to get good access twenty years later, but she persevered, and the result is remarkable.
We’re also visiting Jo Wakelin’s garden outside Queenstown, in a rather inhospitable region. Jo recently shared photos of it covered in ice, with snowy mountains behind. She’s a really clever plants woman, choosing the right perennials and grasses that form a tapestry, while the landscape itself becomes an extension of the garden.
Jo Wakelin's Garden
There are lots of lovely gardens we’ll be seeing – each one unique, full of personality, and deeply connected to the land. The gardeners are very knowledgeable, very hospitable and friendly.
Is there any particular garden you're really looking forward to seeing?
Each garden has really magical elements. But one I’m especially excited about is Barewood Garden. The first time I visited, it felt rather like a discovery. You drive down a long country road, past vineyards, into a valley surrounded by trees, and suddenly this amazing garden reveals itself.
The couple who created it eventually had to sell, and I felt so sad, because gardens are never quite the same. But the wonderful news is that a young couple bought it. They’re so passionate, learning as the seasons unfold, reaching out to other gardeners for advice, and even being mentored by the previous owners.
I’m really pleased we’ll be visiting Barewood Garden on this trip. It will be exciting to meet the new owners, and of course, watch as they put their own stamp on it, as they should. It’s just lovely to know they truly love Barewood too.
Barewood Garden
Most of the gardens on our New Zealand trip are private. Are they accessible to everyone?
Most of them aren’t. Some open during garden festivals, but otherwise they’re private and only accessible by booking. A few exceptions are places like Larnach Castle, which is open to the public, and the Dunedin Botanic Gardens, which anyone can visit.
Others, like Ohinetahi, you can visit if you book ahead. But for the majority, unless it’s during a festival, they’re not open to the public. That’s what makes this tour so special… we’ll be welcomed into these private realms that most people would never get to see.
Is there anything guests can do to prepare before the tour, so they get the most out of it?
Oh, just familiarise themselves with the topography: where we’re going, starting in the south of the South Island. I think you get so much more out of a place if you have an understanding of what’s around it, rather than just flying in and being oblivious to where you’ve landed.
If you know there’s a mountain range just outside, or a wine region nearby… If you know we’ll be crossing Central Otago, going east from Queenstown to Dunedin and Christchurch, you’ll really get a lot more out of the experience.
What do you hope guests will take away from this garden tour through New Zealand?
I think they’ll take away exquisite scenery, and the incredible warmth of the garden owners.
They’ll be fascinated by plants they’ve never seen before, really unusual ones that we don’t even grow in Australia, many very specific only to New Zealand. Guests will also be intrigued by how gardeners use native plants in ways that feel familiar. They might topiary them, or hedge them - some universal design concepts, but expressed in uniquely New Zealand ways.
And of course, they’ll be in awe of the scenery: valleys with vineyards, dramatic coastlines, and Queenstown – such a gorgeous town by the lake, surrounded by such pretty countryside.
And then, of course, there’s the food. New Zealand’s restaurants are exceptional, so that’s always an added treat.
Feeling adventurous and that this is something you’d like to experience yourself? You can join our 13-day New Zealand’s South Island in Full Bloom trip with Kim. The group is small and bookings close in September!
New Zealand's South Island in Full Bloom
November 3 - November 15