Finding Your Balance

Melbourne landscape designer Christian Jenkins, a veteran of the Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show, drew on his love of Japanese landscapes when developing the concept for. More specifically, he was inspired by the forests of Japan, recreating for his show garden a “forest floor” with lush green lawn wrapping around the carefully selected and placed plants. Irregularly shaped stepping stones led across a front pond to a pavilion. The water then skirted the shade-giving structure, travelling along a pebble-strewn channel (representing a natural stream) and connecting at the rear of the pavilion to another pond. The landscape around the pond behind the pavilion featured a selection of plants, including a variety of Japanese maples which change their look with the passing seasons. Christian used these trees to represent the changes we must all continually make to find balance in our lives. While this garden had a distinctive Japanese feel to it, right down to the authentic Japanese timber gates used as a design feature, it successfully integrated Australian materials and products. The Austral breeze block feature wall of the pavilion, which provided privacy while allowing cooling breezes to flow through, was one compelling example. The pavilion, a place to sit and recharge your batteries, also featured modern pendant lighting and contemporary outdoor furniture, with a sleek SolarSpan roof overhead. The flooring held a visual and textural treat, namely a pebble butterfly mosaic from New Zealand artist John Botica. was created to raise awareness of depression and anxiety for Beyond Blue.