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I was approached to design this large garden in a northern suburb of Sydney. The existing mature garden had be build at least 15 years before and gave me some great bones to work with however there was a lot of wasted space that I had to make good use of.

The side of the house had a garden of sparse grass and was used only for access to the lower garden. The style of house and existing garden really suited a parterre style of garden so I combined Buxus hedging with Japanese windflowers and an espaliered Camellia. By using only a few plants the space feels bigger, refined and complete as a whole. The centrepiece of this garden is the water feature that appears to simply flow into the ground as if there were an endless spring beneath.

The secret garden (named so as it cannot be seen from the house) is in an area that before my visit was simply baron and wasted. Now a shady getaway is surrounded by beautiful plants and this sophisticated spot is great for a book and a cup of tea or an evening drink with friends.

All the sweeping garden beds seemed to be full of Agapanthus and although they are indestructible and low maintenance they tend to only put on a show for three weeks of the year. These were all removed and replanted on various banks in the garden helping to stabilise shifting banks of soil. After enriching the soil new planting inspired by the mixed boarders of European gardens was installed giving the beds months of exciting colours, scents and flowers.

It’s great to get kids outside and into the garden but it’s no secret that it can create a mess. Overall this garden had 35% of it that was actually wasted baron space so to make the most of its hidden wasted areas I created a kids cubby house with a winding bike track.