Where We Found The Blue Doors

Open park, formal garden ‘rooms’ and a lovely cafe are features at  The Orchard Garden  Cafe and Function Centre. We had a pot of tea and desserts there after leaving the art gallery in Alexandra on my birthday. October 31, 2019.

This is the place where we found the very pleasing  blue doors  that provided entry from the open park into the formal gardens.

First two photos by Liz. All other photos by Nigel.
Alexandra, Central Otago, New Zealand.

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The Orchard Garden, Alexandra

The park area was nice and open with a few mounds, this one has a sculpture.

This mound is planted in birch trees with fine white trunks.

After entering the formal garden through the blue doors we found a gorgeous iris.

At the cafe you can dine inside or sit outside in the garden courtyard.

When we visited the day was cool and we opted to sit near the welcoming fire.

“The original mud brick walls of the old packing shed have been exposed inside the cafe to create a unique dining area which retains many features from the stone fruit grading and packing days. The old fruit grader serves as the front bar and chunky nailing up bench as a sideboard.” — from their website

Outside there are lots of hedged garden rooms and hedged paths. One path led us straight to this feature tree nestled in its own alcove formed by a curved hedge. The tiered light foliage makes me confident in supposing the tree is Cornus controversa ‘Variegata’ or  Wedding Cake Tree  – very suited to a place that hosts weddings don’t you think?!

The blue doors weren’t the only entry between park and formal garden. I found another and just near it were these gorgeous birds. Nine of them, each perched on their own pole. I was so amazed to find them as I stepped out to the park!

The Orchard Garden – Cafe & Function Centre
Alexandra, Central Otago, New Zealand

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Text by Liz, photos by Nigel and Liz; Exploring Colour (2019)