This Labour Weekend, Rokowhiria presents a pop-up display of “A New Era: Ng King Bros. Chinese Market Garden Settlement”. This small exhibit features archaeological items from the original site, video interviews, and related objects from our collection – on display in our Learning Centre from 25-27 October 2025.

Ng King Brothers Gardens was a commercial market garden, one of the largest in Aotearoa New Zealand, operative from 1921 until 1964. The site is a rare remaining example of a Chinese market garden settlement in Aotearoa, with the original buildings mostly intact and one of the only remaining Chinese pig pit ovens in Australasia.

Our original 2024 exhibition celebrated the restoration and re-opening of the local settlement in Whakatere Ashburton, opened for public access on 25 February 2024 as a community heritage park. Come and explore the archaeological, historical, and cultural importance of the Ng King Brothers Gardens.