Last Saturday I made the trek down to Tenterfield to check out “Glenrock”, which was open to the public as part of Australia’s Open Garden Scheme. Created by Carolyn Robinson and her husband Peter over the course of 20 years, Glenrock is a five acre wonderland of mature trees, rare plants, billabongs, and extensive stonework. It is widely regarded as one of the best gardens in Australia. I walked through the entry gates like an excited schoolkid, but just managed to retain enough composure to compile a few notes from my visit.
1. A sense of place
I reckon a good way to describe some gardens is with the theological term, sacred, which literally means “set apart”. Upon entering such gardens, I usually feel that I’ve stumbled upon another realm that’s somehow separate from the everyday bustle of life. Glenrock is a garden with a clear sense of place and purpose.
For one the garden doesn’t deny its surroundings, but enhances them. It employs locally available materials, and is full of plants that aren’t in denial of Tenterfield’s cool temperate climate. Add to this the fact that Glenrock is a reflection of its creators’ personalities and passions, and you have a garden that is comfortably at home, yet unique.
2. Vigorous plants
The vigour of the plants growing at Glenrock is incredible. I’ve never before seen Cannas towering more than two metres into the sky, and the ornamental grasses were nearly double the height of the same cultivars in my garden. I put this kind of vigour down to a combination of factors.
Good soil preparation is the key. Carolyn Robinson has a pre-planting program that includes deep ripping, adding minerals and trace elements, and the incorporation of generous amounts of manure and compost. In other words, her soil is healthy and full of nutrients. The plants were living large as a result. The other thing to appreciate was that much of the garden is irrigated, and plants will usually grow bigger when they have access to regular moisture. I suspect some fertiliser might have been used as well.
3. Great plant selection
The palette of plants used at Glenrock is vast, but exceptionally well chosen. All are at home in the Tenterfield climate, thriving despite frosty nights and hot days, and most garden beds are arranged with the deft touch of an artist. Carolyn’s “prairie garden”, in particular, is really well executed. It is as good an example I’ve seen in the creation of successful plant combinations using the elements of texture, form and colour.
My only gripe with the plants used at Glenrock was the general absence of natives. There were some grasses, eucalypts and the odd shrub or two, but the garden is overwhelmingly exotic. To me, the contemporary Australian garden ought to represent the Australian culture. We’re a melting pot, and our gardens ought to reflect this by including natives and exotics in balanced combination.
3. Nice hard landscaping
All the great gardens I’ve visited have expressed a clear relationship between the soft landscaping elements – things like plants, mulch and gravel – and hard landscaping elements like paving, buildings and walls. A garden is a bit like your body. The hard landscaping forms a skeleton, a framework that provides functionality, and support for a collection of plants. Without “good bones”, a garden can be uncomfortable and impractical.
But there’s hard landscaping, and there’s craftsmanship. Glenrock features hundreds of metres of beautifully constructed dry stone walls built from locally available granite. Often these serve a specific function, such as retaining a garden bed or terracing a bank, but occasionally, Carolyn has used them as features in their own right. A semi-circular, freestanding wall separating the garden from the surrounding paddocks was one of the highlights of the entire garden.
In all, I found Glenrock to be a really good garden, worthy of its exalted reputation. It’s easy when driving home from such an experience to make comparisons with your own garden since all your faults and failures suddenly come into view. Yet the spirit of gardening is one of generosity, rather than competition. The better approach when visiting a great garden is to appreciate the owner’s willingness to share (even the best gardeners question their ability), and glean. Get inspired. Take lots of photos, make notes, and go home with a head full of ideas for what you might be able to achieve in your own backyard.
First published in the Toowoomba Chronicle 28th February, 2009
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Is there any chance of seeing some of your photos of Glenrock Justin.
Thanks for your interest Ben. A selection of the Glenrock photos will be appearing in the winter issue of Highlife Downs Living magazine (available from June 1st 2009), so if you can get hold of a copy, that would be your best bet. I might also put some more up on my website in the future, so keep an eye out.