The Boulevard by Archier and Ben Scott Garden Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
The Boulevard by Archier and Ben Scott Garden Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
Ben Scott Garden Design
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong Country / Melbourne, Australia
Ben Scott Garden Design is renowned for crafting gardens that are not just beautiful but deeply liveable, drawing on decades of horticultural and design expertise. The studio’s approach combines design, construction know-how and a deep understanding of how outdoor spaces evolve. It’s all about making tailored sanctuaries for relaxation, play and a connection with nature. Each garden provides a sensory experience that grows with its occupants, which often comes back to collaboration.
Ben Scott Garden Design’s recent project with Archier, set on the highly coveted Yarra Flats, brings all this philosophy to the fore. Featured as part of our Best of est Rooftop Garden round-up, The Boulevard integrates architecture and landscape with refined confidence. The rooftop garden is a standout feature, draped in native vegetation that mirrors the adjacent parklands. This lush rooftop fosters a constant connection to nature, an important factor for the residents. Landscape stairs wind through greenery, leading to interiors framed by expansive views of the surrounding landscape. The garden enhances the home’s natural light and spatial flow, underscoring the importance of indoor-outdoor harmony. It’s a tranquil, sustainable retreat that will only get better with age.
“We collaborated with Ben Scott Garden Design to create a garden that integrates the native vegetation of the adjacent parklands. We covered most of the buildings with green roofs, with plants draping over the edges, so the occupants always feel connected to their environment.”
– Archier
The Boulevard by Archier and Ben Scott Garden Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
The Boulevard by Archier and Ben Scott Garden Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
Emily Simpson Landscape
Gadigal Country / Sydney, Australia
The work of Emily Simpson Landscape reflects the designer’s passion for connecting people to nature through innovative, sustainable and biodiversity-rich landscapes.
Simpson brings a deep respect for context and heritage, as expressed in a recent collaboration with Sydney architecture studio Welsh + Major, on the extraordinary home Argyle Well. The multi-award-winning house fuses an original 1840s heritage home with a new concrete pavilion. The architects worked with Simpson to soften the hard materiality through a rigorous landscaping scheme. “The planting strategy was to introduce biodiverse planting, but also to tell a story about the layers and history of the site. An eclectic mix of native planting, reminiscent of the site before European settlement, was combined with historically significant exotic plants bought to Australia during colonial times,” Simpson shares on the thinking behind the landscaping approach.
With a design philosophy grounded in ecology and beauty, Emily Simpson Landscape is redefining how landscapes enrich human and environmental connections.
Argyle Well by Welsh + Major | Photography by Anson Smart
Argyle Well by Welsh + Major | Photography by Anson Smart
“Through quality and beautiful design we can also embrace increased biodiversity and sustainability to enrich the overall design outcome.”
– Emily Simpson
Argyle Well by Welsh + Major | Photography by Anson Smart
Argyle Well by Welsh + Major | Photography by Anson Smart
SJB Principal Adam Haddow’s Sydney terrace | Photography by Anson Smart
Dangar Barin Smith
Gadigal Country / Sydney, Australia
Dangar Barin Smith is one of Australia’s most celebrated landscape design studios, renowned for developing innovative and enduring outdoor spaces. Established in 1991 by William Dangar, the firm has become synonymous with exceptional craftsmanship, blending horticultural expertise with a refined design aesthetic. A favourite collaborator among esteemed architects – Smart Design Studio, Anthony Gill, Madeleine Blanchfield Architects, among countless others – Dangar Barin Smith projects enhance the built environment with creative approaches that prioritise functionality, beauty and sustainability.
Finding new heights of landscape design, the inner-city Sydney terrace home of SJB principal Adam Haddow breaks with convention. Here, Dangar Barin Smith tackles the challenges of a densely built urban environment by elevating the landscape spaces to maximise sunlight and greenery – while counteracting the urban heat island effect. Through a combination of steel planters, cascading native vegetation and a naturalised rooftop garden, the project introduces vibrant textures and biodiversity to the urban setting. This softens the architectural edges and reconnects the home to its surroundings, creating a lush and liveable outdoor sanctuary.
SJB Principal Adam Haddow’s Sydney terrace | Photography by Anson Smart
“The tightly condensed vertical and horizontal planes of this urban project required a unique and creative approach to the landscaping. The roof garden, whilst small in proportions, gives back to the urban environment with the powerful gesture of a naturalised native park with a feature Bottle Tree and Grass Tree, complementing the project’s charming eccentricity.”
– Dangar Barin Smith
SJB Principal Adam Haddow’s Sydney terrace | Photography by Anson Smart
Kate Patterson Landscape Design
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong Country / Melbourne, Australia
Kate Patterson Landscape Architecture (KPLA) is known for creating gardens that effortlessly balance depth, variety and order. By layering planting schemes and integrating features like pools, patios and outdoor living areas, KPLA’s designs ensure harmony while enhancing interior views of the outdoor spaces. Her work prioritises creating gardens that are both functional and visually engaging.
A standout example is the redesign of an Adelaide Villa in collaboration with Mim Design, which was featured as a Home Tour on est. A key focus was “capturing views across the garden at every opportunity”, Charlotte McGill, Senior Associate at Mim Design shares. Patterson introduced new green spaces tailored to the home’s needs, such as a verdant outlook from the study zone, which brings life and calm to the space. Even unexpected areas, like the walk-in pantry, benefit from exterior outlooks, filling the home with light and a sense of spaciousness. This approach highlights Patterson’s talent for blending practical planning with lush, dynamic landscapes.
Adelaide Villa by Mim Design & Kate Patterson Landscape Design | Photography by Timothy Kaye
Adelaide Villa by Mim Design & Kate Patterson Landscape Design | Photography by Timothy Kaye
Adelaide Villa by Mim Design & Kate Patterson Landscape Design | Photography by Timothy Kaye
Corner House by Powell & Glenn and Kate Seddon Landscape Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
Corner House by Powell & Glenn and Kate Seddon Landscape Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
Kate Seddon Landscape Design
Wurundjeri Woi Wurrung and Bunurong Country / Melbourne, Australia
Kate Seddon Landscape Design is a Melbourne-based studio specialising in lived-in gardens. Combining expertise in design and horticulture, the studio prioritises sustainable approaches, using plants and materials that harmonise with the environment. Every project begins with attentive listening and on-site observation, where the architecture, site conditions and the client’s unique lifestyle are all factored in. This process results in gardens that complement the home and foster meaningful connections between people and their outdoor spaces.
The Corner House, a collaboration with Powell & Glenn, captures this philosophy. Perched on a raised podium, the garden transforms the terrace into a verdant sanctuary, blurring boundaries between public and private while forming visual delight. The planted terrace creates pathways that weave through greenery to the home’s entrance. Elsewhere, Kate Seddon Landscape Design has introduced a showcase of pots for feature plants that can be seen from inside.
Bringing a layered, ‘lived-in’ design complements the architecture by Powell & Glenn. The connection to nature and light is part of the experience, and one that will only be deepened and enriched over time.
“The connection to nature is a fundamental aspect of our design philosophy at Powell & Glenn. In Corner House, we embraced this by integrating layered natural light throughout the project.”
– Powell & Glenn Principal Ed Glenn
Corner House by Powell & Glenn and Kate Seddon Landscape Design | Photography by Sharyn Cairns
