The birds and the bees have a special resonance for the owners of this enchanting meadow-like garden in Melbourne’s inner north. The couple and their two sons, 15 and 11, share it with myriad wildlife, most of it welcome, all as smitten by the garden as they are. About a year after it was finished in 2022 – although you could argue a garden is never finished – a swarm of bees massed near the fence. The couple called in experts to lure them away, but they instead suggested a hive.
“Our bees especially love the purple flowers,” says the owner, abuzz with the sweet benefits of 10 kilos of honey a year.
Framing the meadow, trees such as sentinel banksia (Banksia integrifolia ‘Sentinel’), ovens wattle (Acacia pravissima) and pomegranate (Punica granatum) are underplanted with common box (Buxus sempervirens) and bird’s nest fern (Asplenium australasicum) at mid-height. The grasses include haumata or snow tussock (Chionochloa flavicans), New Zealand wind grass. (Anemanthele lessoniana) and kangaroo grass (Themeda triandra).(Photography: Martina Gemmola)
Plant List
Trees
Sentinel banksia (Banksia integrifolia ‘Sentinel’)
Ovens wattle (Acacia pravissima)
Shrubs
Persian shield (Strobilanthes gossypinus)
Canary Island foxglove (Digitalis isabelliana)
Honey bush (Melianthus major)
Grasses
Haumata/snow tussock (Chionochloa flavicans)
New Zealand wind grass (Anemanthele lessoniana)
Kangaroo grass (Themeda triandra)
Strappy Leaf Plants
Gymea lily (Doryanthes excelsa)
Angel’s fishing rod (Dierama igneum)
Perennials
Blue spurge (Euphorbia ‘Blue Haze’)
Carthusian pink (Dianthus carthusianorum)
Purple angelica (Angelica sylvestris)
Groundcovers
Geranium biokovo (Geranium x cantabrigiense ‘Biokovo’)
Kidney weed (Dichondra repens)
Climbers
Wonga Wonga vine (Pandorea pandorana)
Creeping fig (Ficus pumila)
Maidenhair vine (Muehlenbeckia complexa)
Gymea lily (Doryanthes excelsa), moonshine yarrow (Achillea clypeolata), blue spurge (Euphorbia ‘Blue Haze’), tufted hair-grass (Deschampsia cespitosa). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
When the owners bought the Victorian two-storey brick terrace, they were especially drawn to the expansive back garden, which rambled towards the rear fence. Beneath four soaring elms, about half a century old, was a wonderful woodland, a secret garden, overgrown and hiding diverse plant species.
“The outdoor space drew us to the property,” says the owner. “We love trees and they took up as much room as the house itself. The garden had once been loved, but was overgrown with an old box hedge, honeysuckle and jasmine.”
This is an idyllic haven for the bees and other fauna, thanks to the wonderfully diverse plantings and seasonal flowers. They include ovens wattle (Acacia pravissima), blue sea holly (Eryngium planum), Carthusian pink (Dianthus carthusianorum), Sicilian honey garlic (Nectaroscordum siculum), pale purple coneflower (Echinacea pallida), feather grass (Calamagrostis brachytricha) and kidney weed (Dichondra repens). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
Before they moved in, they called in garden designer and horticulturalist Jimmy Sing, of Sun & Sing, to create order from chaos – but not too much order and structure, as the garden’s random nature had attracted them in the first place. To highlight the elms, with their gnarled trunks and lofty stature, he pared back and edited the other original plantings, ending up with “a stunning pomegranate and tree-size English box that link to the history of the place”.
Purple smoke bush (Cotinus coggygria), pencil pine (Cupressus sempervirens) and kangaroo grass (Themeda triandra). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
“The owners asked to retain that feeling of a secret garden, which the old garden evoked.”
Jimmy Sing, Garden Designer/Horticulturalist
Blue spurge (Euphorbia ‘Blue Haze’) and sage (Salvia nemorosa ‘Ostfriesland’). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
But, as many plants were woody, well past their prime and unsalvageable, he removed more than originally intended. And the owners realised the garden would need some substantial addition as well as subtraction. Most notably, at ground level they suggested a grassy meadow, dense and lush, and ever-changing with the light, the breezes and the seasons. And sensing previous owners had enjoyed cottage-style gardening with exuberant flowers, Jimmy wanted to build on this, but in a more climate-appropriate way.
“The owners asked to retain that feeling of a secret garden, which the old garden evoked,” he says. “So after I opened half of it up to the sunlight, I created a layered meadow that would see flowers emerging through the grass from spring into autumn, lending a continual sense of discovery.”
Blue sea holly (Eryngium planum). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
Angel’s fishing rod (Dierama igneum). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
Purple angelica (Angelica sylvestris). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
Among swathes of grasses native to Australia and Aotearoa (the owners’ birthplace), such as haumata, New Zealand wind grass and kangaroo grass, this meadow features perennials attuned to a Mediterranean climate. Salvias, alliums and achilleas produce pops of colour from early spring to late autumn – and always with an alluring sense of surprise.
“There are more than 40 flowering species in this meadow, of which you may see five to seven in bloom at any one time,” says Jimmy.
The house is bestrewn with climbers, including anemone clematis (Clematis montana ‘Alba’) and Lady Banks’ rose (Rosa banksiae ‘Lutea’). Shrubs include Persian shield (Strobilanthes gossypinus), white correa (Correa alba), oakleaf hydrangea (Hydrangea quercifolia ) and stinking hellebore (Helleborus foetidus). Chairs and table, Tait. (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
The rhythm is set by the large haumata plants (also known as snow tussock), as well as large Gymea lilies unearthed under the overgrown vines and “transplanted to give punctuation”. To restore privacy along the boundary, Jimmy added native trees with verticality (sentinel banksia) and arching form (ovens wattle), interspersed with pencil pines.
Haumata (Chionochloa flavicans), rose campion (Lychnis coronaria). (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
For the hardscaping, the couple specified several sitting areas to ponder the beauty before them. Most notably, Jimmy enlarged the existing rear patio with recycled bricks and built a shed near the back gate to house the family’s bikes. Meanwhile, a meandering aggregate path, edged with recycled bricks, winds throughout, creating a sense of discovery at every turn.
Under the majestic elms, the garden designer added a rustic bench made from 100-year-old reclaimed cypress pine, to enjoy the garden in all its glory.
English elm (Ulmus procera), kangaroo grass (Themeda triandra). Custom bike shelter constructed from reclaimed timber from Ceres Fair Wood. ‘Jak’ dining chairs and ‘Jil’ table, all Tait. (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
“It never occurred to me to have something so far from the house,” says the owner. “It’s a little spot of privacy and calm.” She will often sit here with a cup of coffee and look back towards the house and marvel at all that Jimmy has created, while gladly sharing her paradise with the noisy miners, magpies and lorikeets – and the bees. “I love being surprised by the plants – something that was largely invisible one week will burst out in bloom from nowhere,” she says. “Like a box of chocolates, you don’t know what to expect. I am always surprised at what pops up.”
Such as that happy hive by the fence, which was clearly meant to bee…
Grasses such as New Zealand wind grass (Anemanthele lessoniana), tufted hairgrass (Deschampsia cespitosa) and haumata (Chionochloa flavicans) surround a custom bench in reclaimed timber from Ceres Fair Wood. It’s become a favourite place for the owner to sit and ponder. (Photography: Martina Gemmola)
The Design Team
Sun & Sing: @sun.and.sing
Writer
Chris Pearson
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