Spring is a wonderful time to visit historic ‘Gledswood’, an early colonial homestead and garden situated at Catherine Field, about an hour south-west of Sydney. Construction of the old homestead began around 1816 for the Chisholm family, and convicts built some of the historic buildings including the coach house and stone cottage. Today the estate is owned by Theresa Testoni, and the house and gardens are open to the public.
Theresa and her late husband Fred purchased the property in 1972, and moved into the homestead in 1980. At that time the gardens were overgrown with privet and other weeds, and many significant trees had been lost in storms over the years. However the garden had ‘good bones’ and they formed the basis for restoration work, which began in 1990. Theresa asked Mary Davis, a landscape architect and garden consultant, to help bring the garden back to its former glory.
Visitors are overwhelmed by the scent of wisteria in full bloom, and they also cannot fail to notice the huge Bunya Bunya pines (Araucaria bidwillii) on the western side of the house. Bunya trees were given to wealthy people by the governor in the early years of the colony. An old sandstone sundial surrounded by white daisies is the focus in the potager garden, where gravel paths radiate from the centre. Geometric patterns create interest among the herbs, vegetables and ornamental plants in this area. Other areas include a formal circular rose garden, and a woodland where snowflakes, bluebells and daffodils bloom under established magnolias, crab apples and flowering peach trees. The white garden features white flowering annuals and grey foliage plants, against a backdrop of water trickling from an old pump into a convict-built well.
Gledswood Homestead is at Catherine Field, NSW, near Camden. It is about a 1 hour drive south-west from Sydney.
Gledswood Gardens are open every day except Christmas Day.
Guided tours are available at 11am and 3pm: $6.50 adults, $4.50 children, and $5 seniors.
For more details, phone (02) 9606 5111, or visit the website at www.gledswood.com.au
An article about Gledswood is featured in the October 2000 issue of the Burke’s Backyard Magazine