This garden is about ‘endless possibilities.’ The power of imagination when you’re allowed to dream. The possibility to imagine a secret hidden garden inside a tiny Rubik’s Cube. The tricky task was finding someone who shares and believes in the power of imagination as much as I do. Collaborating with Mitch Farina and Laura van Wensveen from Bespoke Landscape & Design was the perfect match. When the idea was presented to Mitch & Laura, I immediately saw my imagination becoming our imagination, forming right in front of us. They could see their own secret garden inside the Rubik’s Cube. This was the start of something amazing. We are thrilled to share our secret garden at this year’s Melbourne International Flower & Garden Show.
Bayley luutomes - profile
What’s the one element of your Welcome Garden you’re most excited for people to see?
What’s hidden inside our Rubik’s Cube. The power of imagination and where it can lead you.
What are your favourite current trends or themes in garden design?
A trend that is definitely returning (in my opinion, never left) is layering a garden with texture and form, regardless of size and budget. You can achieve this by keeping to a small plant palette and by randomly repeating the same plants.
What’s your favourite plant, flower, or feature in this year’s garden, and why?
This would be the giant Rubik’s Cube. This is the focal point of our garden, the epicenter of where our inspiration and imagination. The birth of the creation and this year’s MIFGS Welcome Garden.
What’s a gardening tip or trick you swear by?
Plant what you love. Design the garden for you. Grow something edible. At the end of the day the garden is for you so enjoy what you love not what someone else loves.
What’s the one tool or piece of equipment you can’t live without?
My bare hands. Making contact with the earth. Nothing feels better than that as a lover of nature.
If you could invite anyone (past or present) to stroll through your Welcome Garden, who would it be and why?
My late husband. He passed away before my career took off. Being from Melbourne, he would have loved the show. Being able to walk him around the garden would have made him proud. I know he will be watching from the box seat, cheering.
laura & Mitch - profile
What’s the one element of your show garden you’re most excited for people to see?
We’re really excited for people to discover fragments of the Rubik’s cube scattered throughout the garden, slowly getting engulfed by plants. It’s a fun, unexpected detail that really brings the space to life.
What are your favourite current trends or themes in garden design?
We are loving how native plants are making their way into more high-end designs. We have such a variety of native species, and not just the typical flowering plants. There’s so much beauty in the textures and sculptural shapes that can really elevate a design.
What’s your favourite plant, flower, or feature in this year’s garden, and why?
We’re so happy to showcase the impressive oak trees we’ve received from our nursery sponsors. Our designer Laura grew up with a huge oak tree in her backyard, so it was especially meaningful to include this sentimental element in our garden.
What’s a gardening tip or trick you swear by?
Always plant in odd numbers. It just looks more natural and balanced, whether it’s a group of plants or trees.
What’s the one tool or piece of equipment you can’t live without?
As a company that specializes in design and construction, when it comes to landscaping, our most beloved piece of equipment is our trust 1.2T Takeuchi 2B10R micro-excavator. For design, having an iPad on site is vital for note-taking and getting ideas down quickly.
If you could invite anyone (past or present) to stroll through your show garden, who would it be and why?
Mitch would invite his grandparents, and Laura would bring her parents. Our families played a huge role in fostering our passion for plants and creating beautiful outdoor spaces.
