Hi folks,

I am 28 years old living in NZ and in the process of planning a large garden for my eventual retirement.

Part of what I want to put in is some trees that in 30-35 years I will use (and for my kids/grandkids/etc to use in 60, 70, 100 years) to build a big dining table and some other furniture (my grandfather was a hobbyist furniture maker and he made some beautiful things, I want to do likewise one day). I have already included many NZ natives such as Rimu, Rata, and Kauri in my design ideas, but I was wondering about some more exotic species I could consider.

I immediately thought of mahogany based on its reputation, but was wondering if you could suggest some other woods suited for making fine furniture and musical instruments? I am not too worried about growing conditions etc at this stage as I will thoroughly research each suggestion to assess whether I can grow it here (and how to, if so) so I guess I am asking what your favourite woods are to work with, and what gives the best end results in your experience.

Thank you in advance!

Alex Love