Sara Hardy Writes

There's a fabulous chance to view eight of the gardens at Edna Walling's Bickleigh Vale Village through the Open Gardens Victoria scheme. These opportunities do not come very often and literally thousands of people head to Mooroolbark to attend - which is why this year arrival times are being monitored to reduce footprint stress on the gardens (and daresay their owners!). You'll need to purchase your tickets well before the day. Bookings are limited so I suggest doing it right now! Here's the link, or if you don't trust links, search the Open Gardens Victoria website for what's on in October 2024. https://www.trybooking.com/events/landing/1252401  Here's some info from the Open Gardens Victoria website to get you started: We are thrilled to be opening eight gardens in Bickleigh Vale Village in Mooroolbark on October 12 and 13, in partnership with the Friends of Edna Walling at Bickleigh Vale Village. In the 1920s Edna Walling created an enchanted village for

  I had the pleasure of receiving a lovely big book called 'The Untold Story of William Shum' who was the editor of Australian Home Beautiful magazine from 1926 to1946. It was his brilliance and guidance, his choices of content and journalists that guided a magazine-reading public towards the New and the Modern. His editorship invited readers to Embrace Change whilst offering all manner of fascinating How-To articles from building to gardening to sewing, cooking and furnishing plus info about the latest mod cons (electric toaster anyone?). It was William Shum who gave Edna Walling a chance to air her gardening, cottage building, and landscaping ideas - and, it must be said, encouraged her idiosyncratic writing style. The book is by Sue Walker, who happens to be one of William's grandchildren. It's a fascinating dip into Australian social and cultural history. Above: the front cover; and part of an Edna Walling article 'This is the House that I Built' (page 189)

  What a fabulous evening we all had discussing our Edna Walling -  her life and work at State Library Victoria in the aptly named Conversation Quarter (16/4/2024). A warm and appreciative audience was there to enjoy our in-depth discussion interspersed with plenty of fun. To view the video please follow this link:   https://www.youtube.com/live/ HQlbrr_XFBA?si= FQGIDod2eY8oVIzt pics: Millie Ross (of ABC's Gardening Australia ) above left, and Trisha Dixon on the right. And me below!

  Enjoy a fascinating talk at the State Library of Victoria as we shine a light on the life and iconic work of Edna Walling hosted by expert horticulturalist  Millie Ross  (Gardening Australia) , in conversation with Edna Walling experts,  Sara Hardy  and  Trisha Dixon . When: 16 April 2024, 6:30pm–8:00pm, Conversation Quarter, State Library Victoria, Melbourne Free to listen onsite plus online live streaming Bookings required:   www.slv.vic.gov.au/whats-on/ life-and-work-edna-walling If you’ve walked through a garden with low stone walls, mossy boulders, meandering paths, self-seeding flowers and groves of silver birches, the design has likely been influenced by Edna Walling. At a time when most women were expected to be homemakers, Edna Walling was pioneering landscape architecture in Australia, designing enchanting gardens across the country for notable clients like Dame Nellie Melba, Dame Elizabeth Murdoch and Sir Frank Packer. Despite her professional profile, Edna lived a very pr

  This image comes from a postcard printed in the UK circa 1910. The caption reads: Picturesque Devon, Bickleigh Vale, Nr Plymouth . When Edna Walling chose the name for her envisioned self-made village (though it was just two dwellings at the time, Sonning and The Barn) I think she was remembering a beloved place from childhood, called Bickleigh Vale. The reverse of the UK postcard declares: 'Bickleigh Vale is a favourite resort with the inhabitants of Plymouth, from which it is only situated a very short distance. If there is one season in the year in which the Vale is more picturesque than in another it is in the spring, when the delicate foliage of the ash still retains its freshness, and the earth beneath is literally carpeted with a brilliant growth of bluebells and anemones.' I reckon they are silver birch in that picture, one of Edna's oft used trees in her landscape designs.  Edna Walling spent her childhood in Plymouth, and each Sunday, she and her father would

Following on from my recent post, here are some more Edna Walling related treasures and pics that I've not shown anywhere before. Above shows Barbara Barnes, Edna's niece, holding up the signboard or 'shingle' that Edna made to advertise herself and her original garden contractor, Eric H Hammond (always referred to as Mr Hammond by Edna). The pic was taken at Canning Downs, Barbara's historic Queensland homestead. Barbara died a while ago and I'm not sure what happened to the shingle, but I do know that Barbara passed on a great deal of Walling's papers and photographs to the State Library of Victoria. I stayed with Barbara for a week during my research for The Unusual Life of Edna Walling, and had the privilege of viewing all this material first hand, and engaging in fabulous conversations with Barbara. She was wonderfully generous - and quite a character, as you can see!  I took these next pics during my recent stay at The Burrow at Wombat Bend (see previo