The gardens are what drew us to the property years ago — now comprising more than 80 different species of plants to admire. We hope you’ll spend some time exploring them during your stay.

Below you’ll find an illustrated map of the grounds. As you wander through the gardens you may see rhododendron, oleander, maple, salvia, lemon verbena, camellia, alongside many more, depending on the time of year.

Please keep in mind, stays at Jacky Winter Gardens will vary visually. The gardens in question are at the whim of climate and season, as any good colour palette should be. Some days are dewy and evergreen, whilst others red, brown and muddy. Always bring your boots! The gardens are particularly appealing after rainfall.

Artist Statement

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I met this magical garden in December 2014—a real estate agent called wanting me to do a quick makeover before sale. I stood at the top of the drive and marveled at her wilderness. There were no paths, just a canopy of established trees buried a mile deep in untamed undergrowth. I could see the basic outline of a garden that ‘was’, and knew that it would require some perseverance to return her to her glory. A quick makeover with two days on-site would see a tidy-up and some paths roughly instated so that the garden could be seen.

But the real fun and bonding began when this little patch of earth became Jacky Winter Gardens. I was employed to unravel her wilderness and tame her just enough that she could be enjoyed for her fruitfulness. And fruity she is!

In the first few weeks, I uncovered a wild raspberry patch that was set to keep me in snacks as I snipped and uncovered the nectarine and apple orchard. Fresh and juicy figs to the top right, amidst a kiwi vine that went on to produce a bumper crop. With the space we’ve now created, I’m sure old grandmother Kiwi is set to grow abundantly in the coming seasons too.

I share this garden with a tribe of native friends, and have been lucky enough to meet the resident cranky old wombat. He likes to nibble on the lower limb foliage of the fruit trees. I’ve had morning tea with two black wallabies that prefer to eye me from a safe distance across the creek, and the bird life is beyond compare. In fact, the local parrots will sit on my knee for a taste of my lunch. I’m yet to meet the resident platypus, but local knowledge tells me that they’re thriving in the beautiful, healthy bubbling stream that lines the bottom of this happy plot of growth. Puffing Billy keeps me company with his several whistles during the day: I’m never lonely when maintaining this little patch of paradise.

As a permaculturalist, I meet many a garden. But this little patch of Mother Earth has a special place in my green-thumbed heart.

Miranda Mueller
Co-Author, Plants of Power

Jacky Winter Gardens is a proud neighbour and supporter of Friends of Clematis Creek, an organisation that works to regenerate a quarter-acre block of remnant bush called the Clematis Creek Bushland Reserve.

The Clematis Creek itself originates in the Sherbrooke Forest, located within the Dandenong Ranges National Park. It runs alongside Monbulk Road from Kallista, past the Micawber Tavern and the Sherbrooke Art Gallery, which is just down the road from us in Belgrave (poke your head out from our driveway and look down to your right!).

Clematis Creek then runs behind Jacky Winter Gardens, and it is a critical part of our landscape. You might hear the pleasant babble of the creek from inside the bedroom, or whilst working away in the studio. Platypuses are still sometimes seen in the creek (you might be lucky!), and wombats, wallabies, antechinus, skinks, Powerful Owls, parrots and many other birds are all active members of its surrounds.