Meet the Manager — Gavin Hardy, Head Gardener
MEET THE MANAGER
Gavin Hardy, Head Gardener
According to Gavin, his love for horticulture can be traced right back to his first job - working at the garden centre in his hometown of Sheffield, England. This job marked the start of a diverse 20-year career across a number of renowned establishments including The Royal Horticultural Society, National Trust, Tottenham Hotspur FC and of course, Mona Farm.
In search of a cool climate, Gavin joined the Mona Farm team in November 2021. In the midst of Australia’s wettest summer in three decades & Mona Farm’s busiest season to date meant that Gavin’s first few months as Head Gardener centred around damage-control in addition to the routine maintenance required to keep the grounds presentable. Gavin & team have identified two key areas for improvement which are Lawn Health and Tree Management.
Lawn Health — For many people (including paying guests) a healthy lawn is the hallmark of a thriving garden. Guided by the advice of Gavin, Mona Farm has invested in the best Lawn Aerator available to manage soil compaction, Robotic Automowers to make cutting more efficient, reduce physical labour, improve the quality of presentation & alleviate the stress put on our gardens by intense periods of foot-traffic.
Tree Management — The health of Mona Farm’s historic Elm Trees are paramount both to the beauty of the estate and to the safety of our guests. Under Gavin, the gardening team is currently identifying & removing some of the more obvious overhead hazards as a priority, and over the next five years will work on managing the age structure within the Elm woodland itself. When the occasional 100-year-old tree does sadly reach its lifespan, Gavin flips the stump, creating a unique sculptural & natural display and more importantly - securing its home for the next 100 years.
As the seasons begin to change and the weather starts to settle, Gavin is also working on a number of growth-projects including a new wildflower meadow, located behind The New Stables. Low-maintenance & high-impact, Gavin says these are the type of projects that work perfectly for a luxury 124 acre estate such as Mona Farm. Wildflower meadows can survive the Braidwood frosts, respond very well to Mona Farm’s highland cow hooves and make for a striking display. Over the five years, it’s our hope that our guests will enjoy watching the vibrant annuals such as red poppies and blue cornflowers slowly start to morph into a field of white late season perennials such as Yarrow and Ox-eye daisy.
When asked what his favourite part of the Mona Farm gardens are, Gavin replies that it’s ‘the mix between the arts & crafts cottage-style gardens and the more contemporary garden spaces lined with corten walls. In other words, the fusion between the old and the new’ which, very fittingly, is the root-system of the entire business.
If you would like to work alongside team members such as Gavin, please feel free to get in touch and tell us about yourself | Romy Besnard, General Manager — romy@monafarm.com.au