With an international rhododendron conference in Dunedin next week, Gillian Vine has the popular shrubs very much in mind.
As in so much of the Dunedin area, rhododendrons and camellias grow extremely well in Jackie and Jeff Matheson's Karitane garden but when they bought the property, the shrubs would not have had a chance.
When the couple moved there in 1986, the location of the 1918 house near the Karitane lookout gave them stunning views but the 1.2ha garden was a tangled mass of Muehlenbeckia and other weeds.
''In '86 when we came here, we couldn't get down there,'' Jeff says, indicating the grass tennis court.
''It was just all vines and things and we took about 50 truckloads of rubbish out.''
Jackie says: ''Apparently, in the old days, there was a nice garden,'' but by the time they came, few traces remained of its former glory.
As the ground was cleared, large rocks were revealed, indicating the volcanic origins of the area, and smaller rocks were saved to be used for walls and steps.
They kept a framework of large trees, including a copper beech, flowering red gum, pohutukawa, several ngaio (Myoporum laetum) and broadleaf trees (Griselinia littoralis), one of which is believed to be at least 350 years old.
Then they began planting, growing numerous rhododendrons and camellias to fill in the gaps. They thrived - ''They're growing like weeds now'' - and there now are about 560.
Under the old trees and even in full sun, patches of Chatham Island forget-me-nots are a great sight with their shiny leaves and intense blue blossoms. They self-seed freely, as do the hellebores which fill every space around the camellias.
Over the years, more trees have been added including magnolias, a southern rata, totara and a kauri, now 10 years old.
Birds have contributed a few, too, including kowhai seedlings, but the most unusual ''tree'' is a fan palm, possibly the European species Chamaerops humilis, that started life as a pot plant.
Jeff's mother grew it; then when he inherited the little palm, he transferred it into the garden, where it has grown to about 2m and produces flowers, something potted specimens never manage to do.
A Paulownia in front of the house is kept low so the ever-changing view towards Karitane is not obscured. The tree has a feeder which attracts hundreds of birds, including waxeyes, tui, bellbirds, blackbirds and chaffinches.
Wood pigeons (kereru) are frequent visitors, particularly when a spindleberry (Euonymus europaeus) is fruiting.
''They get drunk on the spindleberries,'' Jackie says, adding that they fly at shoulder height when under the influence.
Jeff built the rock walls between the house and tennis court. He is self-taught, although Jackie was confident the walls would be fine because ''he is a good farmer with a good eye''.
The terrace garden is full of roses, which come into flower when the spring shrubs are over.
There is one exception, the old climbing rose Phyllis Bide by the veranda, which flowers all year round.
Raised vegetable beds, shaped to fit the terrain, were also crafted by Jeff, who used old wooden telegraph poles for the walls.
''It's a nice garden and we love it,'' Jackie says.
A believer in only growing what does well, she is delighted with how well rhododendrons perform, as she and Jeff love them.
Her favourite is Pink Pearl, just coming into bloom, and if the weather is kind, she thinks it will be at its peak tomorrow when the property will be open for the Waikouaiti-Karitane Presbyterian Church's garden day.
Like the restoration of the garden, being open for the local church is a return to the past, Jackie says, because many years ago, ''long before our time'', the owners opened the garden as a church fundraiser.
With the international rhododendron conference coming up in Dunedin next week, visiting the Matheson garden is a timely reminder of how well the plants do here.
