GR E AT GIF T

When two daughters decided to create a special multigenerational home, the garden was an all-important part of the plan.

There is no underestimating the effect of a gorgeous garden. Spending time in a lush, cultivated landscape filled with scent, colour and favourite flowering plants – combined with family togetherness – does wonders for the soul. And that was the rationale for this glorious garden in Sydney’s north-west. The 4000-square-metre property is home to three generations of the one close-knit family. It’s an arrangement that evolved when two sisters decided to create a communal property that would accommodate both their families and their mother. Together, they built two new dwellings – joined by an internal walkway – creating a sprawling floor plan that gives everyone space and independence.

From the outset, the sisters wanted to create for their mother a beautiful garden to flow around and hug the homes. So, early in the construction phase, they enlisted landscape design company Outdoor Establishments to come up with a design for the vast 3200-square-metre gardenscape. >

TREES

Crepe myrtle ( Lagerstroemia

‘Natchez' and L. ‘Acoma') Magnolia ( M. ‘Teddy Bear' and

Magnolia x soulangeana) Redbud ( Cercis canadensis ‘ Forest Pansy')

Ornamental pear ( Pyrus calleryana ‘Capital')

SHRUBS

Indian hawthorn ( Rhaphiolepis sp)

Pittosporum ‘ Miss Muffet' Jade plant ( Crassula ‘ Blue Bird') Kangaroo paw ( Anigozanthos sp) Salvia ( Salvia ‘ Santa Barbara')

Correa alba GROUNDCOVERS

Japanese star jasmine

( Trachelospermum asiaticum ‘Flat Mat')

Blue chalksticks ( Senecio serpens)

“They wanted every corner of the property to be incorporated into the design,” says Trystan Graham, co-director of Outdoor Establishments. “The main driver was that they wanted it to be a space that would encourage their mum outside, and give her enjoyment.” Trystan’s business partner, horticulturist and designer, Matt Hook, became the garden’s project manager.

The key imperative was for the garden to be accessible, with no steps. This was always going to be a challenge considering the 5-metre fall across the block from street frontage to back corner, but Matt and Trystan’s design cleverly navigates and mitigates the effects of the sloping site. Using a combination of major earthworks and clever engineering, plus strategically placed ramps and timber decks, they have connected the levels and turned the garden into a series of user-friendly and inviting, plant-focused spaces that extend straight off the indoor living areas.

Since the garden needed to cater for the needs of three generations, the brief called for a range of different zones and destination points too. “The owners are part of a large family and they love hosting gatherings, so they wanted big entertaining areas and a firepit,” says Matt. “They also wanted plenty of open areas for the kids to play and roam, and breakout spaces for individuals and smaller groups to retreat to.”

At the entrance to the property Matt designed a sweeping driveway, lined on one side with Indian Summer crepe myrtle ( Lagerstroemia ‘Natchez’) underplanted with salvia and prostrate rosemary. “The portico at the entrance to the home informed the shape of the driveway which we designed as an in/out loop.” Inside and around this ‘loop’ are large areas of level lawn and sinuous garden beds filled with layered and textural foliage plants. Along the front fence is a row of magnolia ( Magnolia ‘Teddy Bear’) underplanted with Indian hawthorn ( Rhaphiolepis ‘Snow Maiden’); at the entry gates are wide beds combining agave species, blue chalksticks and Rhaphiolepis ‘Oriental Pearl’. Near the front portico, jasmine ( Trachelospermum asiaticum) forms an undulating groundcover, dotted with buxus balls and ornamental pear trees ( Pyrus calleryana ‘Capital’). “The front garden is quite formal,” says Matt. “The pears, the

“The owners wanted plenty of open areas for kids to play and roam, and breakout spaces for individuals and smaller groups to retreat to.” Matt Hook, landscape designer

the buxus and the repetition of tree and shrub species is in keeping with that sense of formality.” All the retaining walls are built from Sydney sandstone, the warm golden tones of the stone creating a foil for the lush greens. “The sandstone brings an elegance to the garden,” says Matt. The same stone is used for the curved bench seats throughout the garden and for the circular firepit.

The planting becomes more relaxed towards the back of the property. At the rear, suspended concrete slabs extend off the home, creating terraces where Matt has designed two hardwood pergolas and a series of generous alfresco spaces that connect seamlessly with the indoors.

The planting palette here reflects the change in hardscaping materials. “The planting becomes more contemporary to match the concrete and large-format stone pavers,” says Matt. The beds are filled with an eye-catching blend of contrasting textures and shapes. Bougainvillea, olive trees and magnolia are mixed with roses, crepe myrtles, citrus, salvia and agaves; cloud-pruned buxus is combined with soft cascading ornamental grasses and striking forms in the agaves and dasylirion. “I guess you could call it a modern Australian plant selection,” says Matt. Around the firepit, there’s silver-toned jade plant ( Crassula ‘Blue Bird’), Kalanchoe ‘Silver Spoons’ and masses of kangaroo paw.

To honour the matriarch of the family, the homeowners were keen to include flowers and seasonal change into the garden. “She loves flowers and it was essential that we incorporated colour into the garden,” says Matt. This has been answered with roses, crepe myrtles, magnolias and salvias sprinkled throughout. The main floral flourishes occur in spring and summer, but there are pretty bursts in autumn, too, in the form of dusty-pink billows of Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ and the goldenorange foliage of ornamental pears. Even in winter, there are flowering golden Aloe ‘First Gold’, followed by masses of magnolias. “There is always something coming into flower,” says Matt, whose favourite aspect of the garden is its sense of ease and flow. “Design and construction-wise, this garden had its challenges. But I look at it now and I think it looks effortless, like it always belonged here. That is the success of it in my mind.”

“The curved sandstone bench around the firepit makes the space feel inclusive. It’s the perfect shape for people to huddle around the fire.” Matt Hook, landscape designer

Outdoor Establishments, St Leonards, NSW; (02) 9966 8630 or outdoorestablishments.com.

A Persian silk tree ( Albizia julibrissin) is underplanted with the luscious, contrasting textures of clipped Westringia fruticosa, Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ and smooth agave ( Agave desmettiana). OPPOSITE Garden designer Matt Hook and his dog Bob sit on a sandstone bench opposite the front portico. Two ornamental pear trees ( Pyrus calleryana ‘Capital’) stand either side of the bench; Japanese star jasmine and clipped balls of Japanese box encircle the gravel.

Sydney sandstone is used for the retaining walls in the front garden, where recurring plantings of buxus, jasmine and ornamental pears lend a sense of formality. OPPOSITE Clockwise from top Agapanthus lines the front fence. The driveway is lined with ornamental pears and crepe myrtles. Prostrate rosemary grows in front of a row of Euphorbia wulfenii. Agave desmettiana, Magnolia ‘Teddy Bear’ and Lomandra ‘Tanika’ are among the contrasting foliage textures.

Matt’s design incorporates open, level stretches of lawn like this one along the side of the house. The lawn is Sir Walter buffalo: “It’s slower-growing so doesn’t require as much mowing and naturally suppresses weeds due to its thickness,” he says. Along the right-hand border is a row of weeping white crepe myrtle ( Lagerstroemia ‘Acoma’). OPPOSITE From top Two pergolas, made from recycled spotted gum, are built on the suspended concrete terraces at the rear of the homes; the flooring is travertine pavers. A stylish clothesline on the rear terrace. A mandarine tree pops out of a cut-out in the paving. Textural contrasts of Indian hawthorn ( Rhaphiolepis ‘Oriental Pearl’) with agave varieties ( Agave americana, A. desmettiana and A. ‘Blue Glow’) .

After two years of planning and construction, the team from Outdoor Establishments (from left) Trystan Graham, Haley Downes and Matt Hook enjoy the fruits of their labour, sitting around the firepit built from Sydney sandstone. Encircling the area are silvery jade plants ( Crassula ‘Bluebird’) and Kalanchoe ‘Silver Spoons’ with kangaroo paw ( Anigozanthos) in mixed colours.