The garden is compartmentalised into different sections dependant on their environments. To the east is a truly coastal garden whipped by fierce easterly storms and sometimes directly splashed by waves. To survive, plants in this garden had to be among the toughest but still had to reflect the tone of the house. The view out to sea had to be uninterrupted and the sensitivity of views from the beach were also accounted for. The unique stone walls, reflecting the seawalls further along the beach and the glass pool edge provided for pool fencing requirements without creating any monumental architectural elements that could have been obtrusive. We used Selleria groundcovers amongst the stepping stones and Coprosma 'Poor Knights' as hedging. The lower embankments around the boardwalk steps were filled with Oioi and Muehlenbeckia which both handle direct salt spray. To the north the house allowed us to create a sheltered hedged courtyard and flower gardens, dividing the narrow space from the house entrance using Ficus 'Tuffy'. Pleached Pohutakawas were planted for privacy on the boundary and are proving to be very easy care screening.