William Douglas Cook (

New Plymouth New Plymouth () is the major city of the Taranaki region on the west coast of the North Island of New Zealand. It is named after the English city of Plymouth, in Devon, from where the first English settlers to New Plymouth migrated. The New Pl ...

New Zealand New Zealand () is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and List of islands of New Zealand, over 600 smaller islands. It is the List of isla ...

, 28 October 1884 – Gisborne, New Zealand, 27 April 1967) was the founder of

Eastwoodhill Arboretum Eastwoodhill is the national arboretum of New Zealand. It covers and is located 35 km northwest of Gisborne, New Zealand, Gisborne, in the hill country of Ngatapa. It was founded in 1910 by William Douglas Cook. Cook's life work would becom ...

, now the national

arboretum An arboretum (: arboreta) is a botanical collection composed exclusively of trees and shrubs of a variety of species. Originally mostly created as a section in a larger garden or park for specimens of mostly non-local species, many modern arbor ...

of New Zealand, and one of the founders of Pukeiti, a

rhododendron ''Rhododendron'' (; : ''rhododendra'') is a very large genus of about 1,024 species of woody plants in the Ericaceae, heath family (Ericaceae). They can be either evergreen or deciduous. Most species are native to eastern Asia and the Himalayan ...

garden, close to New Plymouth. He was a "plantsman with the soul of a poet and the vision of a philosopher".As an editor described him in a foreword to an article by Douglas Cook in "New Zealand Gardener" magazine of 1 January 1948

Biography

Douglas Cook was the second son of William Cook (

Aberdeen Aberdeen ( ; ; ) is a port city in North East Scotland, and is the List of towns and cities in Scotland by population, third most populous Cities of Scotland, Scottish city. Historically, Aberdeen was within the historic county of Aberdeensh ...

Scotland Scotland is a Countries of the United Kingdom, country that is part of the United Kingdom. It contains nearly one-third of the United Kingdom's land area, consisting of the northern part of the island of Great Britain and more than 790 adjac ...

1855) and Jessie Miller (

Glasgow Glasgow is the Cities of Scotland, most populous city in Scotland, located on the banks of the River Clyde in Strathclyde, west central Scotland. It is the List of cities in the United Kingdom, third-most-populous city in the United Kingdom ...

, Scotland 1853). William arrived in

Auckland Auckland ( ; ) is a large metropolitan city in the North Island of New Zealand. It has an urban population of about It is located in the greater Auckland Region, the area governed by Auckland Council, which includes outlying rural areas and ...

, New Zealand at 8 September 1879 and started working as an accountant with the Bank of New Zealand. Jessie arrived 19 August 1881. They married three weeks later. The first son John Arthur was born 9 September 1882. The family changed home often. At 28 October 1884 Douglas was born in New Plymouth. A daughter named Sheila Mary Melot was born in Auckland at 25 December 1891. Douglas had a difficult relation with his father and left home when he was 17 years old to go working as a "cowboy" in

Hawke's Bay region Hawke's Bay () is a region on the east coast of New Zealand's North Island. The region is named for Hawke Bay, which was named in honour of Edward Hawke. The region's main centres are the cities of Napier and Hastings, while the more rural ...

. One year later he bought a peach orchard in the neighbourhood of

Hastings Hastings ( ) is a seaside town and Borough status in the United Kingdom, borough in East Sussex on the south coast of England, east of Lewes and south east of London. The town gives its name to the Battle of Hastings, which took place to th ...

. The money he needed he borrowed from his father. He bought the orchard of James Nelson Williams, the grandfather of H. B. (Bill) Williams, who would play such an important role in the history of Eastwoodhill 60 years later. Douglas had bad luck. Two times frost destroyed most of the crops. He had to find another job. In a ballot he acquired a part of the Ngatapa settlement, large. He called his new property "Eastwoodhill", after the house where his mother grew up near Glasgow. He would live there all the rest of his life, and create a large arboretum, with more than 2,000 different

taxa In biology, a taxon (back-formation from ''taxonomy''; : taxa) is a group of one or more populations of an organism or organisms seen by taxonomists to form a unit. Although neither is required, a taxon is usually known by a particular name and ...

of trees and shrubs. In the early years after his arrival at Ngatapa, the farm was substantially enlarged. But in later years he sold parts of the property again, to gain money for buying trees. In 1965 Douglas Cook sold Eastwoodhill to H. B. (Bill) Williams, who bought the arboretum with the purpose to preserve it for the future. During

World War I World War I or the First World War (28 July 1914 – 11 November 1918), also known as the Great War, was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War I, Allies (or Entente) and the Central Powers. Fighting to ...

Cook fought in Asia, Africa and Europe as a trooper of the

Wellington Mounted Rifles The Wellington Mounted Rifles Regiment was a mounted infantry regiment from New Zealand, raised for service during the First World War. It was assigned to the New Zealand Mounted Rifles Brigade, part of the New Zealand Expeditionary Force. The ...

and as a gunner in the N.Z. Field Artillery.Berry 1997, p. 11 William Douglas Cook married Claire Bourne at 20 October 1930. They adopted a son, named Sholto. The marriage did not succeed and Douglas and Claire separated in 1937.Clapperton 1992, p. 3 Cook died in 1967, at the age of 83 years, a "plantsman with the soul of a poet and the vision of a philosopher".Editorial introduction to an article by Cook in the New Zealand Gardener Magazine of 1 January 1948, as cited by Berry 1997, p. 62

Eastwoodhill

When Douglas Cook arrived at his newly bought land in 1910, he started planting immediately. In this first plantings "he followed a utilitarian approach – some mixed

eucalyptus ''Eucalyptus'' () is a genus of more than 700 species of flowering plants in the family Myrtaceae. Most species of ''Eucalyptus'' are trees, often Mallee (habit), mallees, and a few are shrubs. Along with several other genera in the tribe Eucalyp ...

and

Monterey Pine ''Pinus radiata'' (synonym (taxonomy), syn. ''Pinus insignis''), the Monterey pine, insignis pine or radiata pine, is a species of pine native to the Central Coast (California), Central Coast of California and Mexico (on Guadalupe Island and Ced ...

(''Pinus radiata'') for firewood, and of mixed orchard including apple, pear and plum trees for household use".Berry 1997, p. 9 He built a small cabin to live in. This was replaced by a larger dwelling in 1914. In that same year he left for voluntary service in

. Just before his departure an order of a hundred trees and shrubs and a hundred rhododendrons and azaleas arrived and it was a rush to get these planted.Clapperton 1992, p. 2 In the First World War Douglas Cook served in

Gallipoli The Gallipoli Peninsula (; ; ) is located in the southern part of East Thrace, the European part of Turkey, with the Aegean Sea to the west and the Dardanelles strait to the east. Gallipoli is the Italian form of the Greek name (), meaning ' ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

and

France France, officially the French Republic, is a country located primarily in Western Europe. Overseas France, Its overseas regions and territories include French Guiana in South America, Saint Pierre and Miquelon in the Atlantic Ocean#North Atlan ...

. In France he lost the sight of his right eye in 1916. He spent some time in England to recuperate. During that time he visited some beautiful gardens, especially the Royal Botanic Gardens at Kew. After returning to New Zealand in 1917 (with a plant of both the red and variegated cabbage tree, that

Arthur William Hill Sir Arthur William Hill (11 October 1875, in Watford – 3 November 1941, in Richmond, London, Richmond) was Director of the Royal Botanic Gardens, Kew, and a noted botanist and taxonomist. The only son of Daniel Hill, he attended Marlboroug ...

of Kew gave him) he started creating his own park. Now that he had learned to admire the beauty of trees, he started planting on a large scale. For instance in 1920 about 2,500 trees and shrubs were ordered for the garden. Bulbs and perennials were ordered too, including

tulip Tulips are spring-blooming perennial herbaceous bulbiferous geophytes in the ''Tulipa'' genus. Their flowers are usually large, showy, and brightly coloured, generally red, orange, pink, yellow, or white. They often have a different colour ...

hyacinths ''Hyacinthus'' is a genus of bulbous herbs, and spring-blooming perennials. They are fragrant flowering plants in the family Asparagaceae, subfamily Scilloideae and are commonly called hyacinths (). The genus is native predominantly to the East ...

lilies ''Lilium'' ( ) is a genus of herbaceous flowering plants growing from bulbs, all with large and often prominent flowers. Lilies are a group of flowering plants which are important in culture and literature in much of the world. Most species are ...

and

gladioli ''Gladiolus'' (from Latin, the diminutive of ''gladius'', a sword) is a genus of perennial plant, perennial cormous flowering plants in the iris family (biology), family (Iridaceae). It is sometimes called the 'sword lily', but is usually cal ...

.Berry 1997, p. 15 In the subsequent years plantings continued. The garden was extended. From 1927 onward, when Bill Crooks got engaged, the creation of the "Parks" started: * In 1927 the first plantings of "Corner Park" were made. * From 1934 "Cabin Park" was planted. * At the end of

World War II World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...

"Douglas Park" was included in the plantings. * In 1952, Douglas Cook, then being 71 years old, sold of his property. The money was used for making ponds throughout the arboretum and for the development of "Pear Park", "The Circus", "Orchard Hill" and "Glen Douglas".Gundry, Sheridan – The colourful story of Eastwoodhill, in: An 2007, p. 10 At the end of his life, Douglas Cook had established an arboretum of international importance. Since then, new plantings contributed to what now has become the National Arboretum of New Zealand.

Not an ordinary farmer

Douglas Cook wrote, in 1963: "I never was a farmer. That was only a means of living in the country and being my own boss. I never could stand taking orders and loved roaming the hills".cited by Clapperton 1992, p. 2 He spend most of his money on plants, rather than investing it in his farm. And apart from that he was a

nudist Naturism is a lifestyle of practicing non-sexual social nudity in private and in public; the word also refers to the cultural movement which advocates and defends that lifestyle. Both may alternatively be called nudism. Though the two terms ar ...

, and used to work only in a pair of boots and a sun hat. Bob Berry, who got involved in the development of Eastwoodhill in the 1950s (and still is involved in it up till now) remembers his "puckish sense of humour".Berry 1997, p. 72 William Douglas Cook might be called "a passionate man, not because of his somewhat mercurial personal relationships, but he certainly showed an undeviating passion for planting trees over a lifetime".Mortimer 1997, p. 46 His passion really took form after he took possession of the 260 ha property of Eastwoodhill in 1910. "After just six weeks a garden was shaping up, and by the end of the first year he had filled sixteen pages of his notebook with details of plantings". Cook went back to Britain again in 1922 and 1924, to get new inspiration for his dream of establishing a park of his own. After the second World War there was another impetus to Douglas Cook for collecting as much different trees as possible at Eastwoodhill. He was afraid that Europe would be destroyed in a new (nuclear) war and saw his plantings as a repository for good garden material.Clapperton 1992, p. 5Berry 1997, p. 31f Mortimer states that there "is a fair amount of information about what he bought (...), but not much about where he put them or what their fate was. He was essentially a collector (and a muddler), buying one of everything he hadn't got".Mortimer 1997, p. 47

Pukeiti

Douglas Cook had a passion for

s, and "rhodos" didn't fare well at Eastwoodhill, in the late 1940s. That brought him back to

Taranaki Taranaki is a regions of New Zealand, region in the west of New Zealand's North Island. It is named after its main geographical feature, the stratovolcano Mount Taranaki, Taranaki Maunga, formerly known as Mount Egmont. The main centre is the ...

. He knew that rhododendrons flourished in that region. He and Russell Matthews grasped the idea of creating a rhododendron garden at the slopes of Mt. Taranaki. In March 1950Berry 1997, p. 34; Jellyman a.o. 1976, p. 7 states 1951 they found a good spot at a good height above sea level, and with enough rainfall throughout the year. Douglas Cook bought the of land called Pukeiti, and offered the site to the New Zealand Rhododendron Association. Having a lack of finances, this organisation declined his offer. In October 1951 he formed The Pukeiti Rhododendron Trust (by then a group of 24 like-minded peopleSmith 2007, p. 8), to which he donated the land. In 1952 a further was given to the Trust anonymously. Membership of the Trust grew steadily, volunteers worked, donations of money, plants and materials flowed in, and Pukeiti, as the gardens have become known, flourished.Jellyman a.o. 1976, p. 5 The gardens now cover , holding 2,000 different specimen of rhododendrons and membership has reached 3,000.

Writer

William Douglas Cook was a prolific writer of letters. He also published a number of articles in gardening journals and year books etc. In the period 1948–1951 he published quite a few articles on Eastwoodhill in the ''New Zealand Gardener''and one in ''The Journal of the

Royal Horticultural Society The Royal Horticultural Society (RHS), founded in 1804 as the Horticultural Society of London, is the UK's leading gardening charity. The RHS promotes horticulture through its five gardens at Wisley (Surrey), Hyde Hall (Essex), Harlow Carr ...

'', as well as some articles on different topics. In 1960 and 1964 he published articles on

s in New Zealand and on Pukeiti in ''The Rhododendron and Camellia Year Book''.

Honours and awards

* 1948: Fellow of the

Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture The Royal New Zealand Institute of Horticulture (RNZIH) is a horticultural society in New Zealand. History According to its website, the RNZIH was founded in 1923. New Zealand's National Library holds minute books from the Institute dating back ...

(RNZIH).Berry 1997, p. 63 * 1965: Veitch Memorial Medal from the

(of the U.K.), recognition of his efforts over 45 years for service to horticulture.Berry 1997, p. 61, 63 * 1966: Associate of Honour of the RNZIH.

Selected bibliography

* 1948a: "Development of 'Eastwoodhill', one of New Zealand's Outstanding Private Gardens". In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 January 1948. * 1948b: "Trees for the Farm – Why Not Get Away from the Commonplace?" In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 May 1948, pp. 540–542. * 1948c: "Nyssa sylvatica – For Autumnal Colours". In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 July 1948, p. 743; and "two small trees of N. sylvatica on offer (by WDC), p. 753. * 1949: "A New Zealand Garden, 'Eastwoodhill', Gisborne, North Island". In: ''The Journal of the Royal Horticultural Society'', Vol. LXXIV, Part 5, May 1949, pp. 183–192 (+ 3 photos) * 1950a: "The Glories of Autumn – Colour Parade at Eastwoodhill". In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 May 1950, pp. 664–667. * 1950b: "Eastwoodhill in Autumn – Trees and Shrubs of Real Beauty". In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 July 1950, pp. 848–9. * 1951a: "A Plantsman's Garden – Unique Horticultural Collection at Lindisfarne". In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 February 1951, pp. 472–4. * 1951b: "A Plantsman's Garden – The Lindisfarne Collection". In: ''New Zealand Gardener'', 1 March 1951, pp. 526–8. * 1960: "Rhododendrons in New Zealand". In: ''Rhododendron and Camellia Year Book'' 1960, pp. 54–59 * 1963: letter of 1 January 1963. Posthumously published in: ''Eastwoodhill Information Series'' no. 2 (1992) * 1964: "Pukeiti". In: ''Rhododendron and Camellia Year Book'' 1964, pp. 21– 26.

Footnotes

Literature

* Jellyman, A, R. Hair, A. Smith and L. Bublitz – ''A Guide to Pukeiti''. Publ. by Pukeiti Rhododendron Trust, New Plymouth 1976 (with articles contributed by A. Jellyman, R. Hair, A. Smith and L. Bublitz). * An. – ''Eastwoodhill, the colours of an arboretum''. Publ. by Eastwoodhill Inc., Ngatapa, Gisborne 2007. . This book contains a collection of photographs by Gisborne Camera Club Inc. Design and Production by Gray Clapham. Photographic co-ordination: Stephen Jones. Introductory essay: Sheridan Gundry. Botanical descriptions: Paul Wynen. * Berry, John – ''A Man's Tall Dream; The Story of Eastwoodhill''. Publ. by Eastwoodhill Trust Board, Gisborne 1997. * Clapperton, Gerry – ''The Story of William Douglas Cook''. Publ. as a leaflet "Eastwoodhill Information Series No. 1" by Eastwoodhill Trust Board, Gisborne 1992 * Mortimer, John (1997) – 'A Magnificent Obsession' in: New Zealand Growing Today, Kumeu, New Zealand, . April 1997, pp. 45–51 * Smith, Graham – Pukeiti, the Rainforest Garden (with photographs by Jane Dove Juneau). South Pacific Light Press, Oakura 2007. {{DEFAULTSORT:Cook, William Douglas 1884 births 1967 deaths People from New Plymouth New Zealand gardeners 20th-century New Zealand farmers New Zealand military personnel of World War I New Zealand naturists New Zealand writers Veitch Memorial Medal recipients