Garden Habitat
With a growing reputation for creating gardens that draw from the beauty of the Australian landscape, what is Phillip Johnson’s own garden like? Meredith Kirton went on a trip up the mountainside outside Melbourne to take a look.
Phil Johnson has been in the landscaping industry for 16 years, and has to his credit a number of successes, not the least being his Gold Medal winning entry and Best in Show at the Melbourne International Flower and Garden Show in 2009. Not a bad record considering he is only 35 years of age.
His business, Phillip Johnson Sustainable Landscape Systems, tries to create landscapes that respect the harsh conditions of the Australian environment, working within these to create truly beautiful, and very functional, spaces. In fact, Phil thinks that “the future of landscape design needs to be the creation of sustainable, native, indigenous habitats that promote health and wellbeing – for the people who interact with the space, and for the earth itself.” So, with the stick held so high, what does Phil’s own garden look like?
Nestled into the mountainside in Olinda, in Victoria’s Dandenong ranges, is home for Phil and his wife. Surrounded by towering Mountain Ash, the site is both breathtakingly beautiful but also fraught with hazards. Fire risks, access difficulties and erosion concerns are just a few of the elements that need to be addressed in the design of a suitable landscape.
Started some years ago, Phil’s garden today has not only overcome these challenges but also masterfully turned them into attributes. The steep site has been contoured with stroll paths, retaining walls have been created out of massive boulders from the local area’s excavations, and water, the main cause of soil erosion, has been redirected on site into a series of natural pools and ponds.
“I call water the soul of the landscape,” says Phil, a sentiment that sits well with Chinese garden designs. In these he shares some common philosophies that see water as the “blood which courses through a garden’s veins”, and rocks as “the bones of a landscape, and plants are simply the flesh”.
At the centre of all Phillip Johnson landscapes sits the replica of an Australian billabong. This design feature feeds the surrounding habitat, helps to fireproof residences and creates a stunning natural pool for swimming or aquaculture. His own garden is no different, with a fabulous pool that not only does these things, but also acts like a giant mirror reflecting the towering gums and ferned surrounds and the light back into what otherwise might be a rather dark space.
Apart from the ponds themselves, there are no impregnable surfaces here either, which means water can be either deliberately retained on site or percolate through to the water table. Water can seep into the soil slowly via the grit or mulched paths, or through the boardwalk. Even the driveway is a geotextile fabric on which moss has grown around the edges and softened the look of the whole thing, making it seem like a living carpet.
Taking responsibility for resource management like this is part of Phil’s mantra. His groundbreaking water conservation and capture techniques, solar power, indigenous and native plantings and use of local and recycled materials are trademarks of his designs both here and in other landscapes. This attention to detail goes right down to the smallest
features. For example, the lights used here (from Gardens at Night gan.com.au) are the most energy-efficient on the market, drawing only 1 watt each as opposed to 50 watts that most lights operate on. Even the trees felled during the construction of Phil’s house were utilised, with a friend crafting them into a bookcase for inside the house.
Bespoke items like this one are lovingly bestowed outdoors as well: the superb fire pit, handcrafted by Lump (lump.tps1.com.au), even an outdoor cinema screen is hung up between two gums and you can sit in the spa and watch an outdoor movie.
As Phil says, “I’m living the dream! Inspiring everyone to create a totally liveable and sustainable garden. We adapt the philosophies at work here in Olinda to every landscape we design and build for our clients.
“I want people to understand that we design and build gardens of all shapes and sizes, and work within any budget. We take clients through our process to ensure they have a landscape that works within their lifestyle, and equally benefits the earth.
“Our landscapes aim to recreate Nature’s majestic work, and to provide people with functional, sustainable spaces. Nature never goes out of fashion, and we celebrate Australia’s enviable natural beauty in our work.”
