Moturau Moana - Botanic Gardens

The thirty four acres of botanic gardens at Horseshoe Bay are a gift to the people, handed over by the botanist Noeline Baker in 1948.

Ms Baker was born in Christchurch, but lived in England for a long time before she built her Dutch Style homestead Moturau Moana (Island of bush above the sea) in 1930. The garden she created was mostly indigenous, and cultivated and catalogued according to the list of renowned New Zealand Botanist Leonard Cockayne.

Ms Baker built another cottage for herself on the island, and also wintered over in Nelson until her death in 1958. The homestead became quite a tourist attraction, but it burned down in 1967.

There is a decent stroll around the gardens and Horsehoe Bay itself is very attractive and not far from Halfmoon Bay. The Department of Conservation is the manager of this asset now, maintaining it for visitor and local use. NZPlaces would love to see your images of Moturau Moana.

Image Credit: AlasdairW