Meet: David Musker

Master Gardener of Broughton Hall

One of Australia’s finest gardens is the result of father and son’s shared love of gardens.

Graham in conversation with David Musker; the story of one man’s life journey to create a masterwork that now sustains and nourishes him. The rewarding design process to create dramatic garden spaces along with restful tranquil spaces. The joy in the design process and the physical gardening activity. And the sharing of this piece of paradise, rewarding and heart-warming.



Have you always been interested in gardening?

My father designed native gardens in the 1970s and we spent lots of time together gardening when I was a young boy.



You were a successful art teacher, what led you to buy a 270-acre dairy in rural Victoria?

I was head of fine arts at a private school in Melbourne teaching design. I had a large garden in the hills outside Melbourne, but I wanted to create a new garden. Philip and I looked everywhere for good soil and rainfall and found Jindivick. The farm we brought had great slope and drainage as well as high rainfall.

We wanted 20 acres but couldn’t get a small holding in this area so bought a larger farm thinking... how hard could it be?



How did you tackle this challenging site?

I prefer flat areas to work on; terracing was obvious for flat workable garden spaces. This helped deflect the winds that constantly battered our house.

When I visited a decade ago you had glorious views to the reservoir below. Now they’re mostly gone, except at this newly designed section of the garden. Was that always the plan?

The view is a stunning backdrop but unless I was successful at designing and creating a more dramatic garden that rivalled the view, visitors would notice only the view and not the garden.

Now, one glimpses the view through the planting; it’s so much more intriguing. The garden is designed to reveal the view at some places, to offer glimpses at others and to ignore it elsewhere. The complete view is revealed at the lowest point, at the new Rock Outcrop. I’ve tried to control the visual experience of view versus garden with plantings to create interest and keep offering surprises.



Why have you designed formal parterres near the house and informality in the distant borders?

I wanted intense interest and contrast close to the house to introduce the garden, to impress and intrigue visitors. Once I had their attention, I used softer plantings and larger features to draw them into the garden. The planting is complex in many areas but surprisingly simple in others. It’s all about visual contrast and interest within a specific area that I create with my planting themes and support with structures like steps, columns, seats, water, paving patterns and level changes.

You’ve planted over 1,000 mostly David Austin’s English Roses. Many gardens like yours are abandoning roses due to maintenance demands but you obviously feel they are worth the effort.

Philip particularly loves roses. I designed the beds with this in mind. Roses are hardy shrubs, loving full sun and offering beautiful fresh foliage in early spring followed by stunning scented flowers in late spring through to late autumn. I underplant all my roses 

Gardeners should plant what they love and what is suitable for their gardens. We need to be wary of fashion and only fashion. Remember, Rembrandt died a pauper because his paintings went out of fashion. Now, of course, his paintings are priceless and the style that came into fashion. 



Apart from a few plants from your nursery, what do you want visitors to take away from your garden when they leave?

I hope they feel calm and happy. It would be great if they found plants they didn’t know, planting combinations they liked and design elements that made sense to them. For example, I hope they like the way we use rock and gravel to break up lawn spaces.

 

What has been your biggest reward?

When I wander around the garden (with the dogs) every morning it’s the tranquillity, the scent and the beauty that is my reward. On another level, it’s the generous comments made by visitors that I truly appreciate.



‘The Charmed Garden at Broughton Hall’, a new book that visually romanticises 25 years of back-breaking garden making. Once a dairy farm in Victoria’s Gippsland, master gardener David Musker captured panoramic views as the backdrop for his masterwork. For more info and to purchase, visit muskersbroughtonhall.com.au