Pukeiti Rhododendron Trust

Caring for Rhododendrons in the Rainforest since 1951

pukeiti

A Much Loved Garden

Based in Taranaki, New Zealand, with national and international members, we are a bunch of passionate enthusiasts, who have been growing and caring for Pukeiti’s “rhodos in the rainforest” for more than 70 years.

Our Founders set up the Pukeiti Rhododendron Trust, Inc. in 1951, purchasing a block of land on a saddle between Taranaki Maunga and the Kaitake Ranges to establish a garden of international importance and grow a world class collection of rhododendrons in New Zealand’s unique temperate rainforest. The site had been named Pukeiti by the local iwi after the nearby Pukeiti lava dome which means “little hill”.

Our Purpose

Conserving the Rhododendron

The Trust’s focus has always been “how does our work benefit our beloved garden?”, but these days we are also very much focused on “how does our work benefit the conservation and survival of species Rhododendron?”

Rhododendrons are a familiar tree to many Kiwis, featuring particularly in established gardens and botanical gardens. Scientifically though, Rhododendron is a complex genus of some 1,300 taxa (species, subspecies and varieties) and, of the 1,232 taxa that have so far been assessed in their wild habitat, 726 have some form of conservation issue. Already some are extinct, surviving only in ex-situ collections in botanical gardens and seed banks around the world.

Of the 1,232 assessed taxa, 903 are currently in cultivation. New Zealand has about 538 taxa in cultivation, with Pukeiti alone holding about 300 taxa. This makes Pukeiti one of the largest collection of rhododendrons in the world.

How do we know all this? Our people are directly involved in global efforts to conserve endangered rhododendrons. In 2018, we set up the New Zealand Rhododendron Ex Situ Conservation Project in partnership with Massey University, the New Zealand Rhododendron Association and the Taranaki Regional Council. Team members also sit, for example on the steering committee for the Global Conservation Consortium for Rhododendron in the UK, and the Board of the Rhododendron Species Botanical Garden in the US.

Species / Varieties

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Taxa in New Zealand

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Varieties in Pukeiti Alone

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Members Locally & Internationally

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Membership

Why become a member

Some of our members have belonged to the Trust for 50 years, some only joined last year. If you love Pukeiti and want to actively support and continue the growth and development of the garden, then we would love to meet you.

Some of our benefits:

Pukeiti is such a beautiful place, I love how the rhododendrons, camellias and other exotic garden plants look growing amongst NZ's native bush. It's really unique.

Margaret H.Volunteer for 20 years

The last time I was at Pukeiti, the sun was shining and the birds were all singing their hearts out. It was stunning. I came away feeling so relaxed and refreshed.

David M.New Member