When you step into Harmony Gardens it is hard to imagine that 50 years ago Joan and Leon Hughes’s first priority was to plant a wind break on the south western side of their property. A former dairy farm which had originally been cleared for its timber, the winter westerlies were bitterly cold. Today as you stroll past magnificent magnolias and mature camellias with under plantings of begonias and bromeliads you feel protected in their aptly named Harmony Gardens. There are no right angles in this garden as it flows from one area to another. No matter where you stand you will see colour and varying textures at all times of the year. Leon attributes this to Joan’s artistry and careful selection of plants purchased throughout the year, ensuring diversity.
Harmony Gardens is on of the six private gardens that you can visit in this year’s Springtime on the Mountain Open Gardens Trail on Friday 27 and Saturday 28 September.
On your way there call into the Showgrounds where a variety of stall holders will be ready with delicious food, great coffee and an assortment of products to entice you. There are wheelchair accessible toilets and for those with young ones you’ll find a baby change room under the pavilion.
Tucked behind the Showgrounds is Beinn Bield (pronounced Ben Build)– a true mountain sanctuary. For owners Robert Miller and Trish Thomson this was indeed a journey of discovery. When they purchased their property less than two years ago they knew that they had something unique. However, at that time it was not visible. By trawling through photos from years past they were able to determine the vision of the garden designer, Jez Clark. Using every spare moment, mornings, afternoons and entire weekends they cleared away the overgrowth to restore the garden to it’s intended glory. It is a peaceful garden with wheel chair accessible pathways bordered by lavenders, taking you to beds of hydrangeas, crepe myrtles and azaleas creating a carefully curated palette. Manicured lawns and meticulously pruned hedges make it very hard to imagine that this garden was at risk of becoming forever lost.
Continue your adventure and head down The Goat Track to Mandalay for yet another very different garden experience. Photos can’t capture it’s breath taking beauty. As you stand on the edge of the escarpment and look into the valley across to the ranges of the Scenic Rim a feeling a calm descends upon you. You can truly appreciate how owners, Jen and John Hands, were immediately captivated by the striking architecture, ever changing views and the serene connection to nature that Mandalay offered when they decided to purchase it in 2018.
The garden was originally developed in 2011 to complement the terrain, managing the flow of water into a spring fed lake on the north eastern side of the property. While the initial plantings were inspired by the subtropical climate Jen and John have added their own touches to enhance it’s beauty. To break up the masses of tropical green created by plantings of tree ferns, philodendrons, frangipani, photinias, arum lilies and more, deep pink cordylines, dracaenas, mandevillas and geraniums have been introduced providing additional colour.
Harmony Gardens, Beinn Bield and Mandalay are all on the southern side of the mountain. Cross the Mountain to visit Petit Bijou, Dingle Dell and The Haven calling in St Georges Anglican Church for a Devonshire tea or pop into one of our fabulous Mountain cafés.
Do yourself a favour- come, relax, refresh and leave inspired with a smile on your face and a spring in your step at this year’s Springtime on the Mountain.
