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michaelcookegardendesign

Our bags are packed and in a few hours we will sta Our bags are packed and in a few hours we will start the long journey home. 
The European summer has been a scorcher. We’ve had extraordinary meals in unforgettable restaurants and enjoyed remarkable wines, but the best memories have been those made with friends.
When we’re in France we make an obligatory stop at When we’re in France we make an obligatory stop at Chateauneuf-du-Pape. We adore the wine and the town’s authenticity - a place where there’s as many tractors and trucks travelling through the streets as tourists. We eat lunch in the middle of the town by the fountain, and have supper on a stone terrace under pine trees in the shadow of the ruined chateau overlooking vines growing all the way to the Rhone. A private wine tasting with Valentin @clossaintjean_cdp was an absolute highlight
The Musee Nationale Picasso at Vallauris isn’t far The Musee Nationale Picasso at Vallauris isn’t far away and we arrived just before the doors closed - literally as there was a power failure and the doors shut instantly. Quite amazing to see the chapelle Picasso painted and its inception, and within a short walk we found the most perfect hand made espresso cups to take home so every time I make a coffee I’ll remember the day. #vallaurisceramics #vallauris #nationalemuseepicasso
A day trip to the hilltop village of St Paul de Ve A day trip to the hilltop village of St Paul de Vence to roam the alleyways. We escaped the throngs of tourists and summer heat and enjoyed an amazing meal before exploring the gallery and gardens  @fondationmaeght This was my second visit and it’s unforgettably beautiful and inspiring. If anyone would like to commission me to design a sculpture garden I’m all ears
Supper in a friend’s inspirational garden in the S Supper in a friend’s inspirational garden in the South of France, began with champagne and canapés beneath an ancient olive tree. 
Merci Sylviane x
I haven’t posted for a while now as we celebrated I haven’t posted for a while now as we celebrated a special birthday with friends in the UK and we’re now back in our home away from home in the South of France in the hilltop village of Mougins which dates back to the 19th century. I take long walks each morning to a park on a hill - not all that far from where Picasso once lived where the most beautiful lotus grow wild in the pond and then I return, take a dip in the swimming pool and lie in the sun and do absolutely nothing. For lunch we eat melon and prosciutto, tomato salad with chèvre and ice cold rose’. I’m losing myself reading for hours, taking afternoon naps, drinking utterly delicious wine and staying up late. I’m feeling the return of my mojo 
#returnofmymojo #mougins #mouginsvieuxvillage
Japanese quince is old fashioned, and has a fragil Japanese quince is old fashioned, and has a fragile beauty. 
Appearing in the depth of winter it flowers on leafless stems, and I grow every cultivar I can find including single and double flowers in clear red, crimson, apple blossom (white transgressing to pink) and white. 
It grows in full sun or part shade to about 2 metres and will spread if unchecked, but is best maintained by cutting any old woody stems to the ground after flowering, which results with lots of fresh upright growth. 
Armfuls of flowering stems can be cut to bring inside, and last for weeks in water. 
Grow some, you’ll love it.
##chaenomeles #winterflowers #wintergarden #australiangarden
Good horticulturists are few and far between, and Good horticulturists are few and far between, and I have a growing pride in the teams of excellent gardeners I associate with. 
Regular followers to my posts know that each winter a handful of landscape companies spend a few days working with me in my own garden where I spend time with secateurs in hand alongside them. Some I have known for years, others are new faces but all have a genuine interest in learning. To begin with most don’t say much but listen, after some time I ask what they would do with each plant, how a combination of plants could be improved, should we reduce the height of a shrub, could it look better if we remove a tree or take off a branch? Rhiann and Matthew from @boxbuildinglandscaping spent two days here this week and first up we spent half an hour up on ladders fine tuning the wisteria. It’s a two way street and I’m happy to learn too and Rhiann showed me a different way to prune hydrangeas, later I was called away and left them to themselves and I’m delighted with what they achieved and it gives me confidence that the gardens we design are in great hands.
Nothing but praise for the @boxbuildinglandscaping Nothing but praise for the @boxbuildinglandscaping team that tamed a formerly wild part of my garden behind the nursery where a huge Wedding Day rambling rose with vicious thorns had taken over and romped through the pecan and crepe myrtle - and the orchard too looks so much better and will only need a few minor tweaks before it’s put to bed for the winter. Watching and working alongside Wade, Rhiann, Matthew, Lachlan,Jacob and Oscar who implement and maintain so many of our designs gives me confidence that those gardens are in excellent hands.
I have much to do, and with a mind that rarely res I have much to do, and with a mind that rarely rests, I’ve rediscovered the calming effect of raking oak leaves into neat mounds - which is lucky, because there’s plenty more where they came from…
#falling leaves #sunday
Every project is unique, each garden owner shares Every project is unique, each garden owner shares a different brief so no two are alike. A few years ago we were asked by an owner architect and his partner to design an easy-care family garden for their contemporary home close to the beach. 
Thanks 📷 #Click 2 Property Photography
Clear and cold, a perfect winter Sunday. It’s such Clear and cold, a perfect winter Sunday. It’s such a satisfying feeling seeing a healthy pile of fresh split firewood knowing it will keep the house cosy this winter, and the smell of woodsmoke when I’m walking through the garden is almost as good as the  warmth.
A home garden should be a sanctuary no matter how A home garden should be a sanctuary no matter how small. A safe, secluded escape where meals can be enjoyed with friends and children can grow. This place is timeless, effortlessly cool - it has it all and it’s only three years old.
Carefully built and maintained by the @boxbuildinglandscaping team it will be aired this Saturday night on @bhgaus where the owner and I talk with @charlie_albone.
Yesterday was perfect weather for mooching about t Yesterday was perfect weather for mooching about the garden. I wandered down paths, over wet grass, under trees and through the paddocks, the trees dripping with raindrops. Lots to do but too wet to do anything besides gathering thoughts.
#aloecoppershowers #casuarinagreenwave #acersengokaku #kniphofiawintercheer #banksiaspinulosa
I visit some gardens just the once and never retur I visit some gardens just the once and never return, hoping that the client is happy with the service we provide - others become wonderful long term relationships with the owners and their garden, builders and tradespeople. We get to know each other over time and the resulting garden’s beauty grows exponentially. The vegetable and picking garden is part of this garden that gives unbounded pleasure. Big thanks to @cornerstonelandscaping for not only building the garden but for their generous guidance and tending it as if it were their own, and to our enthusiastic clients Maureen and Mike.
#gardening #australiangarden #vegetablegarden #flowergarden #lovemyjob
Birds and bees are the Sunday soundtrack, the gard Birds and bees are the Sunday soundtrack, the garden enlivened by falling foliage in swoops of orange and gold.
Half of my working days are in the studio with the Half of my working days are in the studio with the rest in the field. This week I revisited a couple on a small acreage on the coast that chose to work through their garden in a series of ongoing projects, rather than a complete design. What began as a sweeping pencil line on our first meeting became a row of timber stakes hammered into the ground on the next. Mike and Kerrie then collected branches from around the neighbourhood and using posts from an old cattle yard and vineyard wove them into the most beautiful fence which leads the eye to the lower paddock. I love this unique collaboration of ideas. 
Thanks for the excellent biscotti and espresso.
Next the vegetable garden
#australiangarden #recycle #garden #lovemyjob
Occasionally weekends are filled with exciting pla Occasionally weekends are filled with exciting places to go and new things to do, most are spent at home in the garden where growth is slowing down allowing me time to get out into the paddocks. Fallen branches have been cut and chipped for mulch or saved for firewood. Summer pruning have been burnt, and I’ve just cut a hedge that hasn’t been looked at for years and the fine ash from the pile that’s now smouldering from my early start will nourish new vegetable gardens next year. Every year Glenn @dgbrothersrural replaces damaged fence rails and posts and I find a real satisfaction knowing our property is loved and in excellent repair. #simplepleasures
Pony’s out in their paddocks, stables cleaned, and Pony’s out in their paddocks, stables cleaned, and the garden gently folding itself into autumn. #autumngarden #australiangardendesign #australiangardens
Last night we lit the fire outside for the first t Last night we lit the fire outside for the first time this season and sat with friends drinking champagne under the wisteria before dinner looking over the garden while the light faded, and the solar fairy lights twinkled on - it’s a special time of year. The  temperature cools and the garden finds its rhythm, it’s the season for Salvia, early Camellias and grasses, and I wonder why they aren’t growing in more gardens. #autumn #salvia #australiangarden
This morning Colleen Southwell aka @thegardencurat This morning Colleen Southwell aka @thegardencurator wrote that she had abandoned herself to the season, and was letting herself go to seed and aging gracefully - just like her garden, and I’ve all but done the same. My garden is running its own race and there’s not much I care to do about it. It’s wet outside, soon I’ll put the horses out in their paddocks and then continue reading @galah.press no. 14. It’s a wonderful issue, not just because our garden is featured - every article is beautifully written and photographed and I’ve got hours to while away until Easter lunch @thespringspeatsridge
As the mornings become a little cooler Japanese wi As the mornings become a little cooler Japanese windflowers are rising from scorched summer foliage to brighten our days. I grow two cultivars, Anemone ‘Honorine Jobert’ which is tall and white, and A. ‘Bowles Pink’ with pink flowers and wonderful dark purple stems. They prefer good soil, dappled light and regular moisture, but mine grow in full sun, and often dry out - and they survive. #anemonehonorinejobert #anemonebowlespink
Water droplets like diamonds in the muhly grass, m Water droplets like diamonds in the muhly grass, mist shrouds the garden, over the garden to the paddocks the roofline of the stables is just visible. When I finish my second espresso I’ll lead the horses out, clean their stables. Sunday begins
#autumn 
#mistymorning 
#muhlygrass 
#sundaymorning
I fed the ponies early in the dark, and then went I fed the ponies early in the dark, and then went back to bed. Later I woke to raindrops in the down pipe, roused myself with coffee and a walk in the garden in light misty rain. It’s a contemplative sort of day, I’m onto my second espresso - today the weeds and the garden can wait. #amaranthuscaudatus #miscanthuscabaret #topiary #pomegranates #trachycarpuslatisectus
I know, I know @glenmorehouse and @the_garden_at_m I know, I know @glenmorehouse and @the_garden_at_moorfield I’m late to the party, but in the past, growing vegetables has been too much effort with too many bugs, birds and critters eating them before we do but I thought I’d give it another go and I’m so glad I did. Every day there are aubergine and zucchini to pick (ok maybe I planted too many) I’m ridiculously happy to see watermelon swelling and butternut pumpkins close to ripening, and in the orchard Valencia I oranges and pomegranate are colouring up. I’m as proud as a new father, Mickey and Pip I’m converted. #growyourfood #growyourownveggies
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Central Mangrove NSW 2250
Ph: (02) 4373 1212

Recent Blog Stories

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michaelcookegardendesign

Australian garden designer and author with a love of design, art, plants, wine and horses. I live north of Sydney with a large garden & home studio.

Our bags are packed and in a few hours we will sta Our bags are packed and in a few hours we will start the long journey home. 
The European summer has been a scorcher. We’ve had extraordinary meals in unforgettable restaurants and enjoyed remarkable wines, but the best memories have been those made with friends.
When we’re in France we make an obligatory stop at When we’re in France we make an obligatory stop at Chateauneuf-du-Pape. We adore the wine and the town’s authenticity - a place where there’s as many tractors and trucks travelling through the streets as tourists. We eat lunch in the middle of the town by the fountain, and have supper on a stone terrace under pine trees in the shadow of the ruined chateau overlooking vines growing all the way to the Rhone. A private wine tasting with Valentin @clossaintjean_cdp was an absolute highlight
The Musee Nationale Picasso at Vallauris isn’t far The Musee Nationale Picasso at Vallauris isn’t far away and we arrived just before the doors closed - literally as there was a power failure and the doors shut instantly. Quite amazing to see the chapelle Picasso painted and its inception, and within a short walk we found the most perfect hand made espresso cups to take home so every time I make a coffee I’ll remember the day. #vallaurisceramics #vallauris #nationalemuseepicasso
A day trip to the hilltop village of St Paul de Ve A day trip to the hilltop village of St Paul de Vence to roam the alleyways. We escaped the throngs of tourists and summer heat and enjoyed an amazing meal before exploring the gallery and gardens  @fondationmaeght This was my second visit and it’s unforgettably beautiful and inspiring. If anyone would like to commission me to design a sculpture garden I’m all ears
Supper in a friend’s inspirational garden in the S Supper in a friend’s inspirational garden in the South of France, began with champagne and canapés beneath an ancient olive tree. 
Merci Sylviane x
I haven’t posted for a while now as we celebrated I haven’t posted for a while now as we celebrated a special birthday with friends in the UK and we’re now back in our home away from home in the South of France in the hilltop village of Mougins which dates back to the 19th century. I take long walks each morning to a park on a hill - not all that far from where Picasso once lived where the most beautiful lotus grow wild in the pond and then I return, take a dip in the swimming pool and lie in the sun and do absolutely nothing. For lunch we eat melon and prosciutto, tomato salad with chèvre and ice cold rose’. I’m losing myself reading for hours, taking afternoon naps, drinking utterly delicious wine and staying up late. I’m feeling the return of my mojo 
#returnofmymojo #mougins #mouginsvieuxvillage
Japanese quince is old fashioned, and has a fragil Japanese quince is old fashioned, and has a fragile beauty. 
Appearing in the depth of winter it flowers on leafless stems, and I grow every cultivar I can find including single and double flowers in clear red, crimson, apple blossom (white transgressing to pink) and white. 
It grows in full sun or part shade to about 2 metres and will spread if unchecked, but is best maintained by cutting any old woody stems to the ground after flowering, which results with lots of fresh upright growth. 
Armfuls of flowering stems can be cut to bring inside, and last for weeks in water. 
Grow some, you’ll love it.
##chaenomeles #winterflowers #wintergarden #australiangarden
Good horticulturists are few and far between, and Good horticulturists are few and far between, and I have a growing pride in the teams of excellent gardeners I associate with. 
Regular followers to my posts know that each winter a handful of landscape companies spend a few days working with me in my own garden where I spend time with secateurs in hand alongside them. Some I have known for years, others are new faces but all have a genuine interest in learning. To begin with most don’t say much but listen, after some time I ask what they would do with each plant, how a combination of plants could be improved, should we reduce the height of a shrub, could it look better if we remove a tree or take off a branch? Rhiann and Matthew from @boxbuildinglandscaping spent two days here this week and first up we spent half an hour up on ladders fine tuning the wisteria. It’s a two way street and I’m happy to learn too and Rhiann showed me a different way to prune hydrangeas, later I was called away and left them to themselves and I’m delighted with what they achieved and it gives me confidence that the gardens we design are in great hands.
Nothing but praise for the @boxbuildinglandscaping Nothing but praise for the @boxbuildinglandscaping team that tamed a formerly wild part of my garden behind the nursery where a huge Wedding Day rambling rose with vicious thorns had taken over and romped through the pecan and crepe myrtle - and the orchard too looks so much better and will only need a few minor tweaks before it’s put to bed for the winter. Watching and working alongside Wade, Rhiann, Matthew, Lachlan,Jacob and Oscar who implement and maintain so many of our designs gives me confidence that those gardens are in excellent hands.
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