Down to EARTH: For Waikanae landscaper Jon Lambert, work is a day at the beach

摘要

Sun, sand, surf, an audience of cruising killer whales -it's all in a day's work for Jon Lambert. The award-winning Waikanae landscape designer doesn't just spend summers at the beach. He's there every day, creating his signature brand of rugged, stylish gardens from stone, succulents and drought-tolerant natives, plus a liberal application of sculpture. When I first met Jon, in the early years of the Ellerslie Flower Show - back when it was actually held at the Ellerslie racecourse - he was a landscaping enfant terrible. With dreadlocks and a daring attitude, he broke the show-garden mould by planting contemporary swathes of ornamental grasses at the peak of the cottage-garden craze. When other designers thought it radical to underplant standard 'Iceberg' roses with catmint instead of lavender, Jon was arguing the merits of carex and chionochloa.