NEW COTTAGE GARDENS
Our Philosophy
Central to our philosophy is that Beauty must be the ground-spring from which the garden wells forth. In honouring this, excellence and passion are paramount. Without artistry and precision, vision and a genuine connection to tradition, the garden may amount to mere utility, bland and toilsome - a missed opportunity to bring a rare joy into a family’s life.
This ethos has a long history. From the Thomistic monastic gardens, the Humanism of Italy, and Le Nôtre's Cartesian France; to the English formal tradition, and the enduring partnership of Edwin Lutyens and Gertrude Jekyll; to newer expressions — Piet Oudolf's richly-swaying borders, the geometry of Fernando Caruncho, and the disciplined structure of Paul Bangay in contemporary Australia. We study and revere this tradition, before making it our own.
In practice, this means elegant gardens built with conviction. Timeless garden architecture and restrained hardscaping. Bold, unapologetic structural hedging. Rich, occasionally exuberant planting drawn from colourful and textured florals, classic cottage abundance, and considered native highlights. Every choice is made because it is beautiful, never because it is merely fashionable; and always suited to a client's individual preferences. The garden is where a family gathers, where children play beneath established trees. A completion of the home, and a true reflection of its inhabitants.
For the love of Beauty. How a garden ought to be.
Founder Biography:
I once intended to become a park ranger. I had always loved nature and gardens, yet a true connection to plants themselves remained elusive - something half-hidden in the broader tapestry of the landscape. During my studies that changed. The individual wonders of the plant world suddenly revealed themselves in sharp, kaleidoscopic detail. Before long I found myself restoring vegetation along Melbourne’s waterways rather than tending wombats, as I had originally hoped.
After a period with a well-regarded nursery, I opened my own. Residential, acreage and working-farm planting projects followed, and with them a growing pull toward garden design. Coming to understand the discipline of garden and landscape design - its artistry, its structural mechanics, its long traditions - has fundamentally altered how I see the world. It has left me with a heightened aesthetic sensitivity and an enduring obsession with gardens and gardening.
There must always be a kind of poetry in the work. That romance runs through everything I do, whether immediately apparent or quietly embedded. New Cottage Gardens is where all of this has led.
Liam John Daly.