The gardens start at the road with an easy stroll down a formed concrete drive. There are many areas to enjoy for all levels of fitness. For the not so mobile persons. There is seating all around the house and a deck overlooking the pond. More seating in the gorgeous courtyard for you to enjoy. 

Every attempt has been made to use the existing landform. Judicious plantings of natives and exotics have been chosen for their form and foliage to create pleasing and interesting vistas.

The garden has interest all year round with many tropical vireya's and large drifts of colourful Australian grevillea as ground covers on banks.

As gardens are a moving landscape there have been changes to planting and hard landscaping continuously over the years. There several large interesting pieces of garden art to be enjoyed.

Author Julian Mathews wrote in the New Zealand  Gardener.

Margaretha and Terry work hard to ensure their garden is always immaculate. 

They love having visitors to the garden to enjoy the beauty that Terry and Margaretha have created.  

Update:

As a young policeman, Terry was exposed to smoke that contained asbestos. This was at Mt Eden prison during the prison riot in May 1965. He was such a strong healthy lovely man whom everyone loved for his witty garden tours. Terry passed away 5th November 2018, Sadly missed.

A six-acre block, that in 1999 was covered in gorse and scrub. This has given Margaretha and Terry plenty of room to garden. Several natural bush tracks are still under development.

A' La Fois is 7 minutes from Albany Village and 10 minutes from vineyards at Kumeu.

The historic Riverhead Hotel is a 7-minute drive.