ROSEMARY COTTAGE GARDEN

Rosemary Cottage – a garden lovingly nurtured by its owners since they moved in just two years ago. They’ve transformed this modest space into a beautifully maintained cottage garden, which includes a lovely magnolia tree.

This is a true family garden, where the kids explore the veggie patch, happy chickens roam, and bees buzz among the lavender and lamb’s ears. Bursting with colour and seasonal blooms, it’s a celebration of nature, care, and creativity that offers plenty of adventure for children.

​The garden’s charm changes with the seasons, from the magnificent banksia rose hedge that bursts into a cascade of yellow blooms every October to the vibrant crepe myrtle that adds a final splash of colour in late January.

LYNDEN

At the rear of the property, an expansive concrete driveway provides access to a large shed, though initially offered little visual appeal. Over time, this area has been softened with thoughtful planting: hardenbergia and native grasses line the fence, disguising the starkness of the Colorbond boundary, while shrubs now screen the water tanks.

Productive vegetable beds have been introduced, alongside plantings of camellias, azaleas and seasonal bulbs that add colour and variety. The borrowed landscape beyond the back fence extends the outlook, creating a sense of depth and connection to the surrounding land.

Like all gardens, this space continues to evolve, and today it attracts a lively array of birdlife, bringing movement and song to the setting.

THE GLASSHOUSE

The Glasshouse garden was designed to complement the solar-passive home it surrounds, built ten years ago. Every window frames a view of the landscape, which combines ornamental plantings with thoughtful structure.

At the front, a Manchurian Pear provides shade from the western sun, while a grove of silver birch – one for each grandchild – stands proudly above a carpet of daffodils. A brick wall divides the front and main gardens, giving both privacy and shelter. Within, visitors will find crab apples, maples, camellias, magnolias, roses and a variety of perennials and bulbs.

A sculptural metal dish serves as both water feature and bird haven. Teucrium hedging defines the main garden, while the back fence is softened by the climbing rose ‘Pinkie’. Together, these elements create a garden of elegance, warmth and connection.

KILLARNEY

Perched at 1,000m on the slopes of Mt Canobolas, Killarney Homestead is a cool-climate garden brimming with life. Set across two acres, it blends exotics and natives in a relaxed, cottage-style layout.

The rich volcanic soil ensures plants thrive with ease, with a thriving veggie garden hidden behind a picket fence to keep the hares at bay. There are over 50 edible plants growing throughout the garden.

Mature trees, including Golden and Chinese Elms, Nyssa, Pistacia, Maples, Crabapples, Cypress, Junipers, Yew and Ash, form a generous canopy. Beneath them, roses, clematis, lilac, buddleia, fuchsia, penstemon, wisteria, foxglove and hollyhocks add seasonal colour.

A small orchard and a stand of Sangiovese vines complete this abundant, ever-changing garden.

TORMALINE PARK

Tormaline Park began life as a block overrun with briar and blackberry, but over decades has been transformed into a thriving native garden. The earliest plantings date back to 1979, when the first beds were created near the house and the Callistemon ‘Little John’, now a mature shrub, was added.

From those beginnings, the garden has steadily evolved, guided by a deep love of Australian flora. Inspired by a native plant course at TAFE, the owners embraced propagation from both seed and cuttings, filling the grounds with homegrown species that attract birds and insects in abundance.

While a few cottage plants remain, the focus is firmly native, with hardy plantings extending across the property and blending into the borrowed landscape beyond. Every corner tells the story of persistence and optimism, and today Tormaline Park is a living testament to the rewards of patience, resilience and passion for the land.

MEJULUELDA