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‘Celebrating water as a lifeforce’ is central to the landscape of this garden, dubbed Nakari, designed by Phillip Johnson Landscapes.
Once home to former Deputy Prime Minister Jim Cairns, the approximately 21-acre property had been used primarily for sheep and cattle farming over the past century. Then, the devastating Ash Wednesday fires tore through the area in 1983, causing a destructive loss of vegetation, including an extensive fruit orchard on the property.
Rex and Elaine Vandenberg purchased Nakari in 2017 ahead of their retirement. While the existing houses and sheds needed significant attention and the landscape required revitalising, they envisioned a new life here, to be enjoyed with their children and now eight grandchildren.
‘We both like big projects, and we both knew that we could make something of this property,’ says Elaine. ‘We wanted a space that [our grandchildren] could come and explore — climbing rocks and trees, splashing in the water, and just running around.’
Perched on the highest point of Narre Warren East in the foothills of the Dandenong Ranges, Nakari provides gorgeous 360-degree views, but can also be prone to harsh weather, including strong winds and the risk of bushfires.
Phillip Johnson Landscapes’ design embraces this context, harnessing water from the roof, driveway, and surrounding slopes into waterways and tanks to animate approximately four acres of garden year round, and soften the architecture of the new main house designed by Andever architects.
When asked what colours they wanted to see in the garden, Rex and Elaine responded ‘everything’, hoping to attract bees, butterflies, and birds to the site.
‘They wanted a garden that would move, breathe, and shift with the seasons — offering moments of both tranquility and drama.’ Phillip recalls.
Phillip selected a predominantly native palette with water efficiency, resilience, habitat value, and sculptural beauty in mind.
Banksia praemorsa (cut-leaf banksia) provides a bold form and seasonal flowers; Eucalyptus caesia ‘Silver Princess’ offers a graceful focal point with stunning bark and pendant blooms; and Banksia integrifolia (coastal banksia) provides shade with its wind-tolerant canopy.
Meandering pathways and rock stepping stones guide visitors through the garden, leading to seemingly naturally occurring seated areas, with timber seats from the site and large rocks from a Mansfield quarry.
‘There’s a sense of journey, moving through sheltered pockets, across open plateaus, and through native groves,’ says Phillip.
‘It’s a place where you slow down, where you feel cradled by landscape, and connected to something larger than yourself.’
Water flows via a creek, waterfall, and billabongs into a restored dam — now appearing as a small natural lake — that has been fully lined to hold water. With no town water but over 1200 square metres of roof catchment areas across multiple buildings, around one million litres of water is harvested at the property each year, and stored in 500,000 litre tanks.
‘When it rains, the landscape transforms. The billabongs rise, the creek flows, and the garden feels absolutely alive,’ says Phillip.
Just four years on from installation, Nakari’s garden truly feels at home in the rolling hills — as though it has always been there.
The billabongs and creek have matured into thriving ecosystems teeming with frogs, birdlife, and pollinators; grafted natives have developed a strong architectural structure; and mounded garden beds have softened into layered textures.
‘It has become a vibrant highway of activity with small and medium-sized native birds that now move freely through the layered habitat we created,’ says Phillip. ‘Their presence brings an incredible energy to the garden and is a testament to the ecological richness the landscape now supports.’
Rex and Elaine view themselves as custodians of this land, which they share with one of their children, their partner, and three grandchildren who reside in a renovated farmhouse on site.
‘Nakari is blessed with amazing sunrise and sunset views. Looking over the gardens from the bedroom balcony watching the sunrise, or strolling through the garden with the grandkids in the evening are special times.’ says Elaine.
‘They’re deeply committed to guiding the landscape in the most sustainable and ecological way possible,’ says Phillip.
‘Their stewardship philosophy has shaped every decision on the site, ensuring the garden continues to evolve as a resilient, thriving ecosystem that will enrich the land long after our work is done.’
An edited version of this story originally appeared in The Design Files Magazine Issue 04. Subscribe to the biannual print magazine here.
