MULTI-FACETED DESIGN
An abiding love of France inspired the design of this varied scheme, with formal parterres for viewing and decks and terracing for dining and relaxation
A passion for France informs this scheme, devoted to socialising, relaxation and fine views.
There is a rarefied strip of the Mornington Peninsula in Victoria, which is Australia’s answer to the Hamptons. Large houses dominate the area and the gardens are a mixture of country and seaside style. The garden I created for Peter and Maria Wallington is situated slightly inland, where sandy soil, the lowness of the surrounding tea tree forests and the heavily vegetated sand dunes have led to the development of a very particular planting style. The local gardens are filled with plants that can tolerate salt winds and sandy soils – olive, tea tree, lavender, agapanthus, hydrangea and cypress – and large lawns traditionally dominate.
I wanted to respect this planting style in the Wallingtons’ garden, but to add a touch of formality in parts. I was helped by the fact that the house had been renovated and the building’s footprint enlarged, which had led to the creation of four distinct garden spaces, and Peter, Maria and I decided that each one should have its own purpose.
The Wallingtons are unashamed Francophiles, travelling regularly to France, so it was important that the garden reflected this influence. The formality of a parterre, with
Lavandula dentata (lavender), box and Olea europaea (olive) that are typical of French provincial gardens, was the ideal solution for the front courtyard, which we decided should be a viewing garden and not a place for activity.
The Wallingtons like to entertain and this means that large, flat areas within a garden become important. The trick is to make them look like gardens rather than just empty entertainment spaces. Fortunately, the house sits two feet higher than the surrounding land, so in this long, wide space I was able to create a large pergola-covered terrace flush to the building, with three wide steps leading down to the courtyard below. In contrast to the parterre, I decided to leave the this courtyard open, with deep beds framing a shallow pond.
The main recreational part of the garden is situated at the back of the house. Here, a large timber deck outside the sitting room serves as an outdoor kitchen and dining room. A pair of large plane trees are set into the decking, their branches trained in an umbrella shape to provide shade during the summer. I first saw plane trees used in this way in Europe and was fascinated by the work involved to get them to grow in this unique fashion. We experimented with the pruning and training technique, and the result was very rewarding; natural umbrellas that will not blow away in the wind and which lose their leaves in the winter, increasing light levels.
Below the deck there is a large vegetable garden and tennis court, which is shielded from neighbours by tall hedges of
Laurus nobilis (bay) and rows of olive trees. Further beyond, is a swimming pool. The idea is that all summer activities occur around the deck, with plane trees being the only plantings; furniture is used instead to provide interest.
Australia is similar to the south of France in terms of how gardens are used. Everything is based around outdoor eating, swimming and relaxing, which this garden really lends itself to.