Garden

The Garden at 'Woodgreen', Bilpin NSW

 Open by Appointment

We welcome interested horticultural groups of more than 10 individuals by APPOINTMENT.

The garden is open from 1 October to 15 May.

Entry is $11 per person.

On property Coach parking is available

The Garden

The garden at Woodgreen is relaxed, informal and beautiful in all seasons. It features mature trees, lawns with island beds, extensive use of dry-stone walling and pathways leading to interesting corners. Fertile soil of decayed rain forest over clay and Wianamatta shale combined with the high rainfall and elevation in the Blue Mountains all contribute. Plants from the garden are propagated for the NURSERY.

Established over 50 years ago the garden is surrounded by rolling pasture, rain forest gullies and spectacular views to the east and the Sydney skyline 90 kms away. The GALLERY will walk you through the plantings.

Woodgreen’s house was built in the 1960’s and extended sympathetically twice, all to a design by architects Fisher Jackson Hudson. Timber from the property was used in its construction. Out buildings include large corrugated iron sheds – the property is still a working farm.

Close to the house are mature Japanese maples, dogwoods, magnolias, rhododendrons, camellias and white cedars. Luculias scent the air in early Autumn. PETA TRAHAR is a plant collector but as a garden designer knows that plants must be sited according to their needs. She enjoys selecting for colour and texture and has been influenced over the years by the likes of Gertrude Jekyll, Christopher Lloyd, Thomas Hobbs and Sandra and Nori Pope.

There is a new blue garden where Peta’s much loved Italian Greyhound Jessica is buried. Here salvias, geraniums and a mass of blue bulbs flourish.

Beds in part sun feature Buddleia crispa, old azaleas, superb liliums and camellias.

There is an interesting fernery partly constructed from hand hewed slabs from an historic shed that collapsed in the paddock. Here enjoy a selection of ferns, hoyas, fuchsias and other shade lovers. The structure is topped with an enormous climbing fuchsia and a rambling rose, superb in Spring.

From the fernery look out to a mature variegated English elm, Cercidiphyllum or Katsura with the toffee scented leaves in Autumn and a border including sasanquas, Euphorbia, Hoheria and a richly planted carpet of perennials and bulbs. There’s white Daphne here in Winter.

Next you’ll find a charming summerhouse softened with the climbing rose ‘Renae’. A stand of Betula jacquemontii is complimentary. Nearby mature Liquidambars, Tulip Tree and a graceful Cedrus deodara provide shade. If you follow a gravel path, planting on either side reveals a myriad of treasures. You’ll see Epidemiums, Ligularia, Beesia, Dichroa, Pseudopanax, and variegated Acanthus. There are many variegated plants to enjoy as Peta collects them.

To the north the garden moves into full sun. A stone terrace is the perfect spot to enjoy scanning the sunny beds and views down to water surrounded by trees that are particularly colourful in Autumn. It’s worth a walk down to see the reflections.

Ornamental grasses, roses, salvias, cannas, and Phlomis thrive in the open. There are containers of succulents and carnivorous plants. A special favourite is an elegant Xanthorrhoea much admired by Dan Hinkley on his visit.

We move past a pink and grey toned area with dahlias and roses. Nearby is a fabulous Sonchus and aYucca desmetiana. Peta enjoys the spiky Puyas and Dyckias. Under trees Tricyrtis, hellebores, Astelias and Plectranthus flourish. Tiny treasures grow in low pots – the bulb, Paris and other woodland species.

Many Iris species grace the garden at Woodgreen. The delightful Pacific Coast Iris is collected.

This garden description can only act as an appetiser. There is so much more to see – so many more rare trees, shrubs and edible plants. We regard our space as a habitat for the wide variety of wild life. Birds include Golden Whistlers, Yellow Robins, Honeyeaters, Parrots, Whipbirds, Fairy Wrens and the ubiquitous Blackbird (loved for his song). There are Bellbirds, Magpies and Kookaburras, Grey Cranes, water hens, wild ducks and divers. We enjoy the many skinks and see the occasional black snake and wallaby. Bees and butterflies abound.