Brookfield's Sydenham Botanical Park's furniture arrived today - large rustic style picnic tables, seats and benches made from macrocarpa by the Tauriko Timber Mill.

City Care staff were fixing the pieces to previously prepared concrete pads to stay in place for the Winter Weeding Bee early tomorrow afternoon, from 1pm to 3pm.

City Care staff install the new Sydenham Botanic Park furniture.

'There's quite a lot of it. It's all round the front leading edge of the park and scattered round the park as well,” says advisory group deputy chairman Daniel Hancock.

Along with the picnic tables and big bench seats, there are a couple of information panels going in with a map of the park layout, and information about park founder Frank Sydenham.

'This Saturday it's really just trying to promote pulling weeds out rather than using herbicides, which is the preference of the advisory group to get away from the sprays where possible.

'The more the locals can get in there and help out in that way, it's just creating a healthier environment for the kids to play in.”

Weeders are asked to, if possible, bring gloves, a hand fork, a rake or wheel barrow – and be ready to help pull weeds.

Mayor Stuart Crosby will be planting a monkey puzzle tree in the park later this month, says Daniel. The tree was to be planted last weekend, but was postponed because of bad weather.

The monkey puzzle tree is related to Norfolk pines and the New Zealand kauri. The park has one of the largest collections of kauri relatives in the world.

'There's already few Norfolks down the back somewhere. And we have had some donations form a few other growers as well,” says Daniel.

'We have a shopping list we are making up of possible donations for the different themed areas of the park. In the near future we hope to start working on the pathway and pergolas along the sides of the park.

Sydenham Botanic Park covers three hectares in Brookfield, located opposite the Brookfield Shopping Centre.

The land was gifted to Tauranga residents by the late Frank Sydenham. Frank was one of the first ever Massey University students to graduate with a Masters degree in Horticulture. He went on to become a well-known market gardener producing fruit and flowers from this Millers Rd property.

Today the land is being developed by the community into a botanic park with a subtropical emphasis and open grass space.