Rosedown Garden in Tasmania has petal power aplenty

A COTTAGE garden in Tasmania is a rose-filled romantic haven with a wild side.

Rosedown Garden For WAP Open Garden 28 Feb Image supplied

Describe your garden: We’re on the banks of the Derwent River, about half an hour west of Hobart, with just under 2ha that is all garden.

It’s romantic and a little wild. Close to the house it’s more formal and the further you move out, the more informal it becomes, in Gertrude Jekyll style. It’s planted for four seasons but we have a love affair with roses. There are more than a thousand, many of them old-fashioned varieties with cabbage-like blooms and strong scent. We also have a collection of David Austin roses, which look old-fashioned but have the resilience of modern ones and are repeat-blooming. Australian-breeder Alister Clark’s roses feature as well. Fragrance plays a big part in our plant choices. Perennials are the mainstay of the garden, reliable and rich with colour. They’re like old friends faithfully returning each year. Deciduous trees such as birches, maples, elms, oaks, ginkgo, ashes and pears provide a framework and also the microclimate to shelter smaller plants.

What makes it special: We created it ourselves over nearly 30 years, indulging a dream. When we came, there was nothing but a gnarled old golden delicious apple tree, which is still here, a willow and a cypress hedge. The garden evolved rather than being planned; it was made in my heart rather than my head. We kept extending it as we needed space for more roses, trees and perennials that we saw in other people’s gardens, in nurseries or in catalogues. It has given us so much pleasure and has shaped us as we shaped it. It’s our haven that we love sharing with family, friends and like-minded people.

Favourite part: Looking from the double swing under the English ash and pin-oaks towards our 1840s cottage. We renovated and extended it early on. The way it nestles into the garden never fails to please me.

Biggest challenge: Keeping the water up to our grey sand. We get strong westerly winds, severe frosts and this year the rabbits are the worst they’ve ever been.

Influences: We like Beatrice Bligh’s philosophy that: “A garden should be just a little too big to keep the whole cultivated, then it has a chance to go a little wild in spots.” Both our grandmothers were keen gardeners with cottage-style gardens. I can still visualise the plants they grew and loved. Many of our trees have been planted to mark special family occasions such as marriages, births and the passing of loved ones.

What’s in flower: Roses of course, plus dahlias, different species of hydrangeas, penstemons, belladonnas and lots of Michaelmas daises.

Extras: Devonshire teas with our own mulberry jam. Plant sales and hopefully fresh fruit from the garden.