How a Melbourne florist uses a 10-acre estate to redefine floral design
In short: In the cool, moist hills of the Dandenong Ranges, Cherrie Mirikelse-Pavlou finds more than just peace. This expansive estate serves as a living laboratory where unusual cultivars and dramatic textures are cultivated specifically to provide a unique edge for her professional floral arrangements.
The estate in Beechmont, managed by horticulturist Eddie Wasbutzki, functions as both a private sanctuary and a professional resource. The garden is a complex tapestry of formal structures and wilder expanses, featuring a mix of native and exotic species. The previous owner established a foundation of rhododendrons, notably the Vireya species which thrive in the local hilltop climate. The landscape is further enriched by red waratahs, white viburnums, lime euphorbias, and various maples and azaleas.
Innovation is central to the garden's management. Wasbutzki, who brings his own floral expertise to the role, focuses on experimenting with new cultivars that serve a dual purpose: aesthetic beauty and commercial utility. Recent additions include 60 specimens each of the Helleborus ‘Anna’s Red’ and Helleborus ‘Molly’s White’ varieties, selected because they perform better as cut flowers. The garden also features mass plantings of Daphne ‘Perfume Princess’, a hybrid chosen for its larger, more fragrant blooms.
The garden's design even repurposes industrial or recreational spaces for botanical use. A former tennis court has been reimagined as a sunken garden, where old wire fences now support climbing clematis. This space is framed by arches of yellow Kerria japon's 'Pleniflora', clipped hedges, and spiky cordylines, all enclosed by a protective perimeter of hydrangea and rhododendron. This controlled environment allows for the cultivation of delicate species like sweet peas and ranunculus, which Cherrie integrates into her signature 'garden-style' vase arrangements.
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- Summary by Intellect · source: A florist's garden — Beechmont
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