Photography: Marnie Hawson
Happily mingling classic and contemporary design, this compact garden in an inner-Melbourne suburb is the perfect complement to Misha and Craig’s recently renovated home. Their chic abode presents as a petite Victorian cottage at the front, with a sweeping architectural gesture at the back.
Tucked behind a white picket fence, the facade of Misha and Craig’s home has a traditional cottage style, with a narrow front garden that follows suit. The northfacing strip is densely planted with a pretty blend of Salvia, whiteflowering Penstemon ‘Swan Lake’ and the scented shrub Rosa ‘Perfume Passion’. The silver foliage of Wormwood ‘Powis Castle’ offers a colour contrast, while Rosa ‘Eden’ climbs up the verandah posts, making the most of the vertical space.
A rich planting scheme frames the property, inspired by the couple’s travels – specifically, the gardens of Avignon in southern France, and New York’s urban landscaping marvel, the High Line. The homeowners approached Caroline Hyett Gardens & Design in 2022 while their home’s architectural plans were being finalised. Installed in 2025 by KlayCon Landscape Construction, the garden is young and dynamic, with deep pockets of changing colour, form and texture throughout the year. Misha and Craig are enjoying their new outlook and the medley of perennials, ground covers, shrubs and feature trees. “Even in its early stages, the garden has started to show personality through seasonal shifts,” says Misha. “Plants are establishing, softening the structure, and beginning to fill out the spaces.”
MATERIAL WORLD
Large-format ‘Dunraven’ limestone pavers from Better Exteriors chime with the modern textures of the home’s charred timber and white brick. The stone’s elegantly minimal look allows the planting scheme to shine. “We chose limestone for its ability to keep cool underfoot in summer, its non-slip qualities and the beautiful subtle veining that the natural stone features,” says Caroline, who designed curves into the paving layout to echo the shapely lines of the extension. Ground covers growing between the pavers highlight this considered geometry.
Where the old cottage meets the new addition, Camellia ‘Pinktastic’, string of pearls and clipped Japanese box with Geranium ‘Rozanne’ grow in pots. The ‘Elsrijk’ maple is a smaller variety that suits compact gardens.
PLANT PALETTE
‘Naturalistic’ and ‘evolving’ were keywords that shaped Caroline’s plant selection, forming a layered, biodiverse scheme that attracts native birds and pollinators yearround. Feature perennials like Salvia ‘Celestial Blue’ bloom for an extended period, while dusty pink drifts of Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ provide colour in autumn. In the front garden, climbing and shrub roses add a French provincial twist to the array. Moments of clipped Japanese box “bring some formality and structure to what is otherwise a very loose planting,” says Caroline.
IN THE ZONE
The home wraps around a courtyard, where a patch of grass and the limestone paving provide breathing space and a counterpoint to the densely planted beds. The open area is enjoyed daily by the homeowners and their Chow Chow, Nacho. “We use it for quiet moments, morning coffee, reading, as well as for entertaining. It strikes a balance between being functional and restorative, which makes it an extension of the home,” says Misha. Overlooking the yard, the rooftop garden flows on from the upper-level primary suite, creating a private and elevated botanical retreat with district views.
Inspired by the naturalistic planting and all-season beauty of the High Line in New York, the rooftop garden bursts with perennials like Jerusalem sage, Sedum ‘Autumn Joy’ and Penstemon ‘Pink Cloud’. Myrtle spurge, with its sculptural blue-green leaves, adds texture. The result appears effortless but required significant engineering and waterproofing before the rooftop garden could be planted.
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Landscape design: Caroline Hyett Gardens & Design, chgd.com.au.
Landscape construction: KlayCon Landscape Construction, klayconlc.com.au.
Architecture: Ben Callery Architects, bencallery.com.au
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