The first thing that strikes the visitor to Mayfield is the scale of the place. It's massive, one of the largest privately owned cool-climate gardens in the world. If Garrick Hawkins had set out with such a grand horticultural ambition, he might not have chosen the challenging conditions of Oberon. But that's where he runs cattle on 2000 hectares and where he built a grand weekender for the family and began working on a garden. "When we started we didn't intend to make it quite this large," he says. "It just sort of evolved bit by bit."
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Hawkins' collaboration with local nurseryman, horticulturist and garden all-rounder Peter D'Arcy has seen the garden evolve into to a 65-hectare project that employs more than 25 multi-skilled people.
The garden pays homage to Hawkins' personal favourites from the follies and features of the great gardens in England. There's a Chatsworth-esque cascade for instance and an aviary based on the one at Waddesdon Manor. In the early stages of Mayfield's development, this best-of approach seemed risky but now, with the trees grown, the mid-storey flourishing and the delicate colouring-in between the structural planting starting to take shape, the features have nestled into the garden. "It has been interesting watching the spaces which once seemed large and open become smaller and smaller each growing season," Hawkins says.
This spring Mayfield moves into a new phase. The lower part of the garden, called the Water Garden (inspired by the stone and water features at Longstock Park Water Garden in England), will now be open all year. There is also a cafe and a shop stocked with locallyproduced goods, including Mayfield relishes and chutneys. A nursery sells a range of plants, some of which have been propagated at Mayfield. This part of the garden, initially begun as a simple dam, will now operate as a tourism business. The rest of the garden will be exclusively for the Hawkins family, except for six weeks in spring and in autumn when the private garden, with its cascade, walled kitchen garden, chapel, aviaries, deluxe hen houses, orchard, croquet lawn, maze, rose garden and 500-seat amphitheatre, will be open to the public.
So now's your chance. Arrive early, allow the whole day and start with the big picture. Don't be distracted by the details of the Water Garden's irises and lilies; the wisteria hanging in curtains; the cherry blossom and rhododendron in bloom; the incredible stone walls, you'll get to them later. Head to the top of the hill, where a private chapel was built for a family wedding. From the terrace, the vast expanse of the garden stretches beneath you, bisected by curving lines of dark green conifers as emphatic as exclamation marks. Beyond the garden, lines of velvet hills roll across the horizon. Take in the scale - of the ideas, the work, the cost and the effect. In the world of Australian gardens, Mayfield is a rare treasure.
IT'S TIME TO…
VISIT MAYFIELD
The private garden opens for the spring season next weekend (Oct 18), open every day until November 2, 9am–4.30pm (last entry 3pm), $25, mayfieldgarden.com.au.
NURTURE GARDENIAS
It is normal for the old leaves on gardenias to yellow at this time of year but if new foliage is also yellowing, leaving green veins on the leaves, it might be iron deficiency so treat with iron chelates.
PLANT PETUNIAS
'Shockwave' petunias are spreading plants that cover 80 centimetres each. A punnet of four will cover 3.5 square metres of garden, or fill four 30-centimetre containers and flower until autumn.
