Auckland Botanic gardens

A collection of Leptospermum cultivars that are selected for their style, colour, and suitability for garden uses, such as for hedges and specimens.

The collection includes cultivars of historical significance and lineages used to breed the ‘Wiri’ series here at Auckland Botanic Gardens.

The garden has been laid out in a geometric pattern based on the shape of manuka seed capsules and features the sculpture ‘Entwined’ by artist Chris Moore.

Cultural

He iti kahikātoa, pakaru rikiriki te tōtara.

The kahikātoa (mānuka) can reduce the tōtara to small pieces.

This whakatoki refers to the strength of wooden manuka wedges that were used to split tōtara.

Mānuka is one of Aotearoa’s most versatile native plants and has been valued for generations. Its leaves and bark were traditionally used to treat wounds, fevers, and infections, while its dense wood burned hot and clean, making it ideal for fires and cooking. Strong and durable, mānuka was also crafted into tools and wedges for splitting timber. As a fast-growing pioneer species, it is often among the first plants to return after disturbance, helping to stabilise and restore the land.

Gardening Tips for mānuka

Plant in full sun and with good airflow to reduce the effects of humid weather (which can attract sooty mould).
Plants can be pruned to make bushier but do not prune branches thicker than your little finger as they are less likely to regrow. 
Mānuka is frost and drought tolerant once established.

Leptospermum scoparium 'Red Falls'

Conservation

Auckland Botanic Gardens conserves cultivars that may otherwise be lost, including the significant parents of modern cultivars. The plants in this collection were used in the breeding programme at the Gardens that produced the ‘Wiri’ cultivar series.

Research

Horticulturalists at Auckland Botanic Gardens have bred mānuka cultivars under the ‘Wiri’ name. Each successful cultivar is named after a female with an association to the Auckland Botanic Gardens, examples include 'Wiri Donna', 'Wiri Sandra', and 'Wiri Joan'.

Leptospermum scoparium 'Wiri Donna'

Accessibility

Gravel paths are not accessible for wheelchairs or scooters.

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