TWISTS & TURNS

A BRIEF FORBIDDING STRAIGHT LINES LED TO THIS ORGANIC, FREE-FLOWING GARDEN, OFFERING A RESTFUL REPRIEVE FROM MELBOURNE'S HUSTLE AND BUSTLE

- Words BRITTANY SMITH Photography MARTINA GEMMOLA

This garden looked innocuous when Ed and his family first moved in, but it hid a surprising secret. Ed, his wife Esther, and their children Felix, 12, Bassie, nine, and Jasper, six, had only been living in the North Melbourne home for a short time when they decided to transform the garden. The grassy lot looked unremarkable with palm trees, red brick paving and a smattering of gravel. But appearances were deceptive, as landscape designer Andy Murray and landscape constructor Josh Norman soon found out.

"The whole of the backyard had been concreted, with grass placed over the top," recalls Ed. This solved the mystery of why the grass was dying and water kept pooling under the house. It was clear this bandaid solution needed a deeper fix, so the family briefed Andy on an outdoor space complete with a pool, plenty of room for the boys to run around, plus a studio out the back for Ed's work as an audio producer and composer. The final request? "No straight lines," adds Ed.