Some places have to be seen to be believed.
Subscribe now for unlimited access.
$0/
(min cost $0)
or signup to continue reading
Ron and Julie Lambourn’s Weecon Street residence is certainly one of them.
A beautiful, sea-themed garden overlooking the Pacific Ocean, Ross’s Bay and Snug Cove, the garden has been a passion of Ron’s since he began landscaping it 22 years ago.
Your chance to see it up close comes on October 25-26, when the Lambourns and five other keen gardeners in and around town open their gardens to the public for a special fundraising event.
Organised by the Eden Lioness Club in partnership with the Eden Whale Festival, the Eden & District Open Gardens Festival will see all six gardens open from 10am-4pm on both days.
A $10 ticket will get you entry to all six, but if you’ve only got time to see a few, the Lambourns garden is a must-see.
The Lambourns garden features all things nautical, with anchors, heavy chains, portholes, bollards, ship’s capstan, binnacles, telegraph, steering wheels and the like strategically placed throughout.
Everywhere you turn, there’s another spectacular view, whether it’s from the rooftop, seaside deckchairs or carefully landscaped entertainment areas, which are bordered by bollards.
From the water, it has been mistaken by many a mariner for a resort!
If you’re lucky, you might even catch a glimpse of a whale as they head down the humpback highway on their southern migration.
Click on the gallery above for photos, and watch the video below for a virtual tour.
A new addition to the Open Gardens Festival this year is Vicki Telfer’s Lakeside Drive backyard.
Less than two years old, the rear garden has progressed significantly and is fast becoming a favourite of the local birds and lizards.
It’s a low-maintenance space that has helped solve a drainage problem by doing away with grass and mowing, with the dry creek bed its most eye-catching feature.
Check out the photo below, and scroll through the gallery at the top of the page for more.
Though it has been featured before, the Star of the Sea Church garden on Calle Calle Street is brimming with new flora.
Take a look around the garden, and as an added perk, pop into the Mary McKillop Hall for a cuppa while checking out a display of blankets made by the ‘Wrap with Love’ knitting group.
Check out the photo below, and for more, scroll through the gallery at the top of the page.
Just a stone’s throw from the Lambourns is Jan and John Polak’s 25-year-old ocean view garden.
Meandering from the nature strip to the cliff edge, delicate camellias, azaleas and daises are sheltered by fully grown pittosporums, conifers, banksias and palms.
Ample birdlife also come to enjoy the bottlebrush, with melaleucas framing the cliff edge of the Eagle’s Claw National Park.
Heading up towards Eden Cove, you’ll find the Schofield family’s residence on Government Road.
Carolyn and Al moved to the one-and-a-quarter acre property in 1999 with their three sons, and have been tending to their ever-growing garden ever since.
Recent rain has seen the garden thrive, and the changing conditions give way for an ever-changing range of flora.
Dubbed ‘Serendipitous Wandering’, it is a mix of cottage garden, Australian plants, ornamental trees, seats and quirky statues – there are nice surprises in every pocket.
A short drive from Eden, Robert and Robyn Bain’s ‘Survey Point’ is the second new addition to the festival this year.
The Bains purchased the Hardakers Road property in Pambula, 8.5km north of Eden, in 2001.
Overlooking the beautiful Broadwater Lake, the couple spent nearly six years tidying it up while still living in Canberra.
The home eventually built on the site is spectacular to behold, and Tony Gordon and Hotondo Homes’ craftsmanship saw it awarded HIA Country Home of the Year in NSW and the ACT in 2009.
Over the 13 years, nearly 5000 native and non-native plants have been put in, and a large vegetable garden now feeds the Bain family and their friends, with the excess sold at Sprout Eden.
From 10am-4pm on the weekend of November 25-26, all six gardens will be open to the public.
A $10 ticket will get you into all six gardens, and can be purchased at the Lioness tent alongside the Princes Highway, opposite the Eden Gateway Holiday Park, after 9am on either day.
A raffle is also being held, with tickets already on sale from the Lioness table outside the Eden Newsagency.
“We’ve sold heaps already,” Open Gardens coordinator Sandra Symonds said.
“All the prizes combined are worth around $1000, and tickets are just $2 each or three for $5.
“We’re very thankful for the support of Mitre 10 Eden, as our major sponsors, and all the volunteers and other sponsors for their donations.
“The prizes are all really handy gardening equipment, and that’s what is selling the tickets.
“It was going to be worth around $500-600, but everyone’s generosity has meant it’s just grown.”
Ms Symonds said last year’s festival raised “a few thousand dollars”, and that the Lioness Club hopes to reach a similar target this year.
She said proceeds will be put towards funding community activities and needs.
“We work for the community; that’s what the Lioness Club is all about,” she said.
“Over the years, we’ve supported things like the local schools, community activities, the Snowy Hydro SouthCare helicopter, Nullica Lodge, ESSCI and the Men’s Shed.
“We’re also going to be raising money for the carers’ accommodation at the new hospital in Bega, and we always put in for the New Year’s Eve fireworks.
“The community is very supportive of the Lioness Club, and we put everything back into things that will benefit the community.”
For any Open Gardens Festival enquiries, contact Sandra on 6496 1459 or lionesseden@gmail.com