North Haven, one of Ballarat's most thoughtfully designed private gardens and the personal home garden of award-winning landscape designer and television host Paddy Milne (The Scape Artist), will open to the public for one weekend only as part of Open Gardens Victoria. Created over nearly a decade, the garden shows how considered design can transform a challenging suburban block.
Purchased in 2016, the site presented obstacles including a steep slope, overlooking neighbours and noise from the Western Freeway. Rather than resist these conditions, Milne embraced them, using structure, layered planting and spatial design to create privacy and a strong sense of place. Visitors arrive via a tree-lined driveway and bespoke timber gates, with the front garden balancing architectural strength and seasonal planting.
At the heart of North Haven is a north-facing courtyard designed for gathering, featuring a communal table, built-in daybed and wood-fired pizza oven. A raised lawn beyond provides space for play, while the rear garden leans into native planting to extend the surrounding landscape and soften the freeway backdrop. Steel, stone and brick provide structure throughout, supporting planting that delivers texture and seasonal change. A coffee cart will be on site across the weekend.
