Open garden: Guestlands, NSW, a taste of Tuscany

Arcadia, a former nursery, is now a garden with a Tuscan feel.

Guestlands garden at 10 Blacks Road, Arcadia, NSW.

Open garden: Guestlands, 10 Blacks Road, Arcadia, NSW

Owners: Jenny and Peter Guest

Open: This weekend 10am-4pm, entry $10, under-18s free

Describe the garden: Arcadia is semi-rural, about an hour northwest of Sydney. We can’t see any other houses from our 2ha block, which we bought for its lake-sized dam and beautiful trees. The property was formerly a nursery business, so we started with a vacant parcel of tiered land covered in blue-metal stones where the potted plants were grown. The house, however, was surrounded with mature trees that provided some relief. It’s good, deep, black soil here where there used to be lots of flower growers. Our garden covers 8000sq m and has many ­different aspects, some formal, others informal. It has a Tuscan feel, with hidden rooms such as a traditional parterre and an oriental garden. Bridges cross over a cascading creek that connects numerous ponds on its way to the dam. There’s a ­column walk adorned with “New Dawn” roses and the Chess Garden featuring oversized pieces and board. We call it a lifestyle garden, as you are forced to walk through it to get to the pool, spa or cars. The garage is a good 200m from the house.

Peter says: “I love the fact that I have to walk through my garden during day or night, rain or ­sunshine, in every season. It is always changing and I get to immerse myself in it rather than look at it from the house.”

What makes it special: Every garden is special ­because it means something to the owners. Peter designed it and we’ve done a lot of hard work, building it stage by stage over 18 years. It’s not a “cheque book” garden. We worked as a team, with Peter designing and sketching, and me selecting plants, creating our vision. It’s something we both share and are passionate about together. I feel like we died and went to heaven, it’s so beautiful.

Biggest challenges: Time to keep up the maintenance. I’m in the garden most days while Peter does the lawns and the bigger hedges. It’s a labour of love with a garden this size; we’re both really fussy about it.

Favourite parts: Jenny: “I love my vegie patch, inspired by a trip to Europe. It’s parterre style but in rustic railway sleepers.”

Peter: “Walking back from the lap pool up the steps and through the colonnade. I also love sitting on the rails of the bridge looking over the water cascades; it’s so peaceful.”

Extras: Tea, coffee and Anzac biscuits. Our photo album documents the garden’s development.