I'm home

The town of Sorrento is located at the tip of the Mornington Peninsula in Australia. Modern-looking cafes and restaurants line the coastline of Sorrento, which is located in the center of the Mornington beach resort. A bit inland of Sorrento, upon a hill, stands landscape designer Fiona Brockhoff and her family's weekend home. Fiona's garden is right next to Mornington Peninsula National Park. On the other side of the garden, with no border separating the two, lies Port Phillip Bay and Bass Strait. Fiona was committed to emphasizing the beautiful view this landscape had to offer. When she purchased this plot of land in 1995, there were no houses. Instead, there was nothing but a forest of tea trees (Leptospermum laevigatum). So first, the land was flattened with a power shovel. Fiona asked her acquaintance and Sydney architect, Thomas Isaksson, to design the house. Thomas agreed to design the house in a way that would use solar energy, and therefore be environmentally friendly. Indoor walls made of limestone were extended to reach the terrace and therefore accentuate the linkage between the outside and inside of the home. Garden constructor, David Swann, who is also Fiona's partner, constructed this limestone wall. The limestone for the wall was excavated in the Sorrento area. Both the designing and landscaping of the house took place simultaneously.
Fiona's garden utilizes the different levels of landscaping. A number of different areas to entertain were created, including a terrace to enjoy barbecues, a cottage for guests, and a garden complete with swings and slides for children, all of which are surrounded by various plants. Highlighting the garden is an art piece, which rests on a hill, and was created by New Zealand artist Chris Booth. Fiona selected 1,639 kinds of plants that now grow wild in the garden area. Moreover, she arranged topiary of swamp oak (Allocasuarina verticillata), which stand approximately 1.5 m tall, but usually grow to be 5 - 8m tall. Fiona varied the plants of her garden to give each area a very distinct feeling. She also studied Sorrento's native ecosystem and topographic background to help design the landscape with her own style, while still managing to maintain the authenticity of the plant's original habitat.

Landscape : Fiona Brockhoff

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