Four years later, they left the newspaper to become freelance writers on gardening and horticultural subjects. In 1944, Jim founded a new monthly magazine, New Zealand Gardener, and for more than two decades Barbara wrote for it, worked as its assistant editor, and promoted it to horticultural groups around the country. An avid photographer, she also provided photographs of plants and landscapes to gardening magazines, horticultural books, and local newspapers. Starting in the late 1960s, when Jim's eyesight got bad, she wrote his popular newspaper column "Garden with Matthews" for him until 1987, though it continued to appear under his byline.
