About Matukituki Natives

Matukituki Natives Nursery was first established in 2007 by John May, Clint Hughes and Ali Moore. The Emerald Bluffs subdivision had an ambitious plan to clear the wilding pines which dominated the 64 hectare site and then replant with eco sourced native plants. We sourced what we could but simply couldn’t find enough plants, so decided to start growing our own.

Once we started growing plants it wasn’t long before enquiries came in to grow and plant for other projects happening in the region. The nursery steadily expanded and when the subdivision was completed the nursery and landscape team became its own entity in 2011 as Matukituki Natives, taking our name from the beautiful Matukituki River valley in which we are situated. Since then we’ve continued to grow, plant and maintain native plants throughout our region, and have been fortunate enough to have been involved in some rewarding projects.
John and Clint remain as owners of the business and are still as dedicated as ever to growing native plants and conserving our natural heritage.

We’ve had great people come and go along the journey, each contributing to the ongoing viability of the business. We currently have a team of 8 full time staff which doubles during the growing months. Our nursery is relatively small compared to some operations, but significantly larger than when we started, producing around 130,000 plants per year.

Our planting and maintenance team remain as busy as ever, with several long term projects on the go to look after, as well as new ventures around the district.