8 days to go; BUILD DAY 4

The shed from the upper walk

There's lots of action around us today as most of the other landscape sites are started and deliveries arrive in earnest. There's plenty of interest and admiration for the shed and the boys are rightly proud of what they've achieved so far. We've got a problem to solve though, as we're 1 beam short for the end wall. It will finish off the end nicely and will be quicker than packing the gap between the tin roof and wall top with small pieces of timber. Sourcing proves difficult though as these massive 9 metre beams are cut on demand and we need it today. Many phones are running hot as contacts are massaged and pleading is done. Eventually Anthony strikes gold with a source nearby who will have one ready for us tomorrow. Fantastic!

Anthony looks intent on working it out

Today's tasks for the boys involve the shed roof. We're keen to get the tin on by tonight to give the students free reign to get the fence paling floorboards down tomorrow. Stewart has had some hardwood timber battens lying in a pile at home for years, so they've been prised out of his hoard to make an appearance on the roof. Stewart says he's been saving them for something just like this. I think he's been just saving them. They're the perfect colour though to complement his tractor distressed Oregon beams, so he's happy to let them go... for now. He's got space in the backyard for more stuff now and it's only a matter of time.

Stewart's precious roof battens... Make sure you see the roof from the upper walk - it's a wave!

Natural bracing and old methods of fixing..

Rohan has managed to get some of the plywood down that forms the base for all the paths, making it easier to clean up at the end. We've found a way to vastly reduce the amount of material we use for the paths by putting in a garden bed in front of the shed and having a ramp in only one place. It deals with the height issue off the ground and means we only have to build it up in one place. We've also decided to replace much of the granite toppings with a mulch path. Not as easy to negotiate with a pusher, but much easier to pull it up afterwards and it can be recycled. So the plywood goes down so we can drive a bobcat onto the site later and pick it all up easily. I think it might be going to the bushfire area which is great news.

The plants started arriving today by the trolley load - there's so much to do now it's a little overwhelming. We can barely find places to park all the trolleys and have to keep an eye on where they all go so the paths are kept clear to work on.

Gardens like this don't happen without the foresight of major sponsors, and this one is no different. Heading up our group, the ones who approached me some 12 months ago, are Humphris Nursery. This family wholesale business develops amazing plants for wholesale to nurseries under labels like Garden Assets and Coolabah. Austraflora are another sponsor who have developed the 'King in the Garden' range of plants for Melissa King, represented in our heart garden. In the shed and cafe you'll find magnificent cut flowers from Austem, all passionate companies embracing and celebrating the uniqueness of Australian Flora at MIFGS through this garden 'Imagine'. We're all grateful for the opportunity to be a part of their vision!

Tomorrow we'll start work on the kid's garden planting area. The fairy master, Gary, is coming in the morning to see the location he's got for the fairy grotto, so I want those plants in place early. so much to do, so many sore muscles, so little sleep...

BUILD DAY 3: 9 days to go

It's been a long hard day today for the team and slower progress than they anticipated. It's a difficult thing though, building a structure as complex as a huge shed with no centre poles and a curved front, using tree trunks as posts and no concrete to stabilise anything. On top of that, every part of the construction is being done with an eye on easy dismantling, as we only have 3 1/2 days to get out of the park when this is over.So, as a result, what appears a simple task one day may turn out to be a long and involved marathon the next day. We plan what we think might happen, but often it doesn't and rolling with a flexible attitude is crucial.


Today the boys thought they might get the roof pretty much finished. The beams were all up but one - some are 9 metres long and just so very heavy. It looks fantastic with the roof fanning out from a lower back roof height - like a giant fan shell broadcasting to the world. The tree trunk posts all have a bend in the same place, so it's like a wave in the front profile - just so full of character! The last wall is up with its huge window that will be filled with a fantastic floral window box from Sandra.

The team and I in front of the shed with its new beams.

I'm just relieved to see it coming together so beautifully like the picture in my head, but even better. That's due to Stewart grasping exactly what effect I was after and just adding to it with his technical skill. He's quite artistic too actually and can recreate an effect in a very creative way. When the Oregon beams first arrived at the Uni landscape yard, they looked brand spanking new and beautifully square. The first thing Stewart did was tie a chain around them and one by one, he dragged them around a paddock on the back of a tractor, inflicting dents, chips and a great colour. Somehow they seem to have seen a bit of fire damage too but I don't want to know too much about that. Now they look so old they are genuine looking reclaimed timber. I'm sure there was some 9 metre beams out there somewhere that already had this reclaimed attribute, but we couldn't find them. So he made them and they're fabulous. Now we need one more than planned, and that's going to cause a problem. I suspect tomorrow morning I'll be attached to the phone.

Tomorrow has to see the roofing battens finished and the roofing iron on, or we won't be ready for the students to do the floor on Tuesday. I just hope the rain stops at 7am tomorrow!

10 days to go : BUILD DAY 2

It was a beautiful sight this morning as I arrived laden with long bolts for the posts; the boys had the whole floor ply finished, the holes and sand bases finished ready for placing the bar, and the back wall frames were up. The first front post was going up and the scaffolds had arrived. Wow! It's an enormous amount of detailed work, framing up the boxes to hold up the posts. Remember, we haven't dug a hole, there's no concrete and these posts are 3.5 metres tall. It required some engineering to make sure nothing would fall down, but now it needs time to make every box to sit under floor level, solid enough to hold these posts firmly. The work on the shed will slow down now as all the prefabricated elements are in, and now we build everything from scratch.

The wall frames are up, ply is down and the first post is going in.

As the tree trunks I call our posts start slotting into their housings, we keep an eye on Phil's crane across the road and think it might be a safer bet than using the Manitou to place the bar. It's the next thing into the shed, but its location is too far in from the side of the floor for the load to be extended out safely. The manitou will tip over if it reaches that far with 2 Tonne on the end. I go and have a friendly chat to Phil, up to his eyeballs in boulders but still gracious enough to help us out. He comes over and helps us get organised to roll the crane onto the site over heavy plastic boards that protect the tree roots from compaction. Finally, we're ready to lift the slab of timber that is our bar.

The bar is lifted with Phil's crane, starting its journey into the shed.

Once the crane has it in the air, the boys fly into action to roll the legs, a couple of beefy tree trunks, onto the floor in the sand boxes that have been prepared. They aren't light and require some quick ramps to be arranged while everyone gets behind and pushes them up. Finally, they're in place in roughly the same position as they were in Benalla. The crane lowers the slab onto the legs and with a little adjustment, Stewart's spirit level announces no beer will be spilt. We've got it right...

The slab is picked up and teeters into the garden

The 'legs' are rolled into the sand boxes in the floor


Finally, the slab of red gum is lowered onto the legs.

The day is warming up with searing sun now making a spot in the shade difficult to find. We're all keen to get a roof on the shed so we can work in shade. The team keep going on the posts, and by the time I leave, most are in position and it's looking good. Stewart spent time finding just the right trunks with branching at the top to form natural bracing. It really is a masterpiece, this shed.

INTRODUCING THE TEAM:

Anthony, our foreman from Arbour Constructions


Stewart, Swinburne building teacher extraordinaire

Dan, future apprentice of the year

Craig, team leader (and new dad)

Tim, future apprentice of the year

Tomorrow, the roof beams go on and preparations will be made for battening out, ready for the tin on top. Lots to do..... A great team!

11 days to go, BUILD DAY 1

We're on site at last, more than a year after I was approached to design this garden and some 9 months after the first construction meetings at Swinburne Uni. It's a big moment for the whole team, relieved now that we can just get on with the show.



Protecting the lawn & marking out

Today the entire site was covered in fabric to protect the lawn from damage. Kris and I marked out the placement for the shed using all the measurements plotted on the computer. It's so important to get the shed in exactly the same position as we pegged it out in 6 months ago, as the floor panels have been made to fit the slope snugly. It all goes to plan and there's only 50mm of packing required in a few places. What a credit to the Swinburne team for getting that so precise by recreating the slope in their landscape yard.




The shed floor goes down and sales tanks arrive


Across the road from us another huge site is being mapped out by Phil Johnson and his team - another natural wonderland of Australian bush is being created over there, with massive rocks being craned in. We compete for crane space as our deliveries start rolling in. First, the rainwater tanks that form our plant sales area, along with the eucalyptus branches we'll make a pergola from. Then the bar arrives, our massive 2 tonne slab of red gum. It gets parked in the coastal garden ready to be moved in place with a Manitou - like a forklift.





The bar arrives on the crane truck

Meanwhile, the boys are working hard on the shed floor, getting the ply base down and the back posts up. Everyone is pretty happy with what's been achieved in one day and they head home ready for a big day tomorrow.

12 days to go

Our last day at Swinburne before we move to the Carlton Gardens was frenetic with activity, final decisions, packing up materials and a healthy dose of nervous anticipation. A trip through the landscape yard at the Wantirna site would leave most confused, but it all makes perfect sense to us.

The shed framework isn't finished, but the team have done as much as they can. I haven't seen Stewart's lovingly sourced tree trunk posts in place at the front of the shed, but will soon enough. I'm glad we could finally make use of all the timber lying around at the nursery and show it in its gnarled, lichen covered natural form. The timber in our stand shows a real journey when you think about it. We have trees in pots, like the exciting new dwarf Lemon Scented gum - Scentuous, we'll have branches of lemon scented gum hanging from the eucalyptus pergola, we have fallen eucalyptus trunks and limbs creating most of the structural elements of the garden and finally, the showpiece red gum bar stretching 5 metres long and almost 2 metres in diameter. The bar is a simple affair - a 2 tonne slab that is only half of the fallen red gum found on a property in Benalla. It was cut by a portable mill on site a few years ago, so is weathered well but now beautifully figured where bark once protected it. I think it's going to look like a good bed towards the end of next week.

The bar on a property in Benalla

Floral installations are important in our shed as native cut flowers take centre stage there. There has been many changes to the design over the last few months as positioning of different elements were finalised. Yesterday we were planning on cutting holes in the corrugated tin lining of the shed and having flowers spill out of the holes like nature has reclaimed this old barn, but today they will be hanging arrangements spilling out of palm husks. It'll save us some time on site, but also be a beautiful natural effect I think. Sandra is a creative master and loves to work on the edge I think. But then, often at these shows, the best ideas come towards the end of the build as improvisation kicks in and the artist emerges through the fatigue. The trick is to be open and run with it, having fun along the way

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The new dwarf Lemon Scented Gum

Well, my jobs for today are long - chasing scaffolding for the shed roofing and pergola, working on the delivery schedules, finalising work plans and printing the layout plan in multiple layers as we'll mark it out on site tomorrow. We're fortunate to get an early start on site due to the cranes and heavy deliveries that would otherwise hold everyone else up on Monday. Our site is right next to the central fountain in the gardens so if we block the road, no-one will be able to get to the other sites.

The boys are loading the BBQ today with the shed packed in pieces. It will slink down into Melbourne before dawn tomorrow and the birth of our show garden begins. Here we go....

14 days to go...

The shed is up! We have wall framing and floor ply and everything! The size of the thing on the ground is just amazing and really illustrates how huge this garden is. The Arbour boys - Anthony, Craig, Tim & Dan - spent the day working like trojans with Stewart, getting the wall framing done and up with the back posts in place ready for the roof. It's not going anywhere and will be safer to stand in than the old exhibition building.

The shed floor, braced to strengthen the whole structure Arbour's Anthony & Tim

It was a positive hive of activity at Swinburne, with the shed going up at the rear of the landscape yard, a stone walling practise session going on in front, and wine barrels being doctored inside another shed. The wall is forming the left side of a heart shape , for the 'King in the Garden' area of the stand. This is a garden to showcase a range of native plants chosen by Melissa King from Gardening australia. Melissa is a gorgeous, warm hearted, very genuine garden lover and to hear her speak passionately about these plants makes it clear that she really believes in them. So I've taken the heart shape she uses to sign her i in Melissa, and repeated it all over her garden area. I think she's got a heart of gold and that's appropriate. It's so easily lost in business and I really value it.

The curly stone wall - 1st try Ben's stone walling class working it out

So, our wall is the left side of the heart, and a lovely curved seat forms the right side. The wall is to be made in drystone fashion, starting at 400mm high, descending to ground level with a bit of artistry at the end. We worked on the artistry this day at Swinburne and the results were great! No doubt about it though, practise makes a better wall and these students know it now.

Ben creating artistry for the end stone

The wine barrel tables for the cafe also got some work this week and we've worked out what height the grevilleas need to sit at inside them. Sandra, the floristry whizz, will create centrepieces around the tops of the tables with these amazing hugs gumnuts brought over from Adelaide. These are going to be something else! Thanks Yarra Burn!

19 days to go..

8,500 plants have been ordered today from the nursery. They'll be trucked in from various sites depending on how large they are. Huge 4 metre high trees have been grown for us on one site in 1 metre wide bags of soil. We'll need forklifts to shift them into place, so they will go onto the site in the first few days of the build. Kris has worked hard today on our CAD program to work out how many of each we need - it's a rough guide planting plan that will have plenty of artistic interpretation when we get on site. We need something to direct the horticulture students who are helping us though, and to enable the nursery to load the plants in trolleys specifically for the right area of the garden.

One of our advanced Eucalyptus in flower

I feel like we're rehearsing an opera of thousands to be played out on a postage stamp.

Transrock have delivered walling rock to Swinburne today - a beautiful new product called yellow mud stone will form a heart shaped garden bed and a lovely curvy wall in the contemporary garden where the new King in the Garden range of plants will be shown. The Swinburne stone walling students will practise the build of the wall over the next 10 days, sort the rock and pack it onto pallets that make sense to how they will construct it on site. The walls are one of the last things to go in because the students are only in this class once a week, so our construction order is being worked to include them in as much as possible. I'm sure Ben, their teacher, will guide the team like a well oiled machine on the day.

Transrock's yellow mud stone - soon to be drystone wall with attitude

I have a few things to organise tomorrow before spending the day at Swinburne with the entire team. Many of the retaining walls in eucalyptus branch and corrugated iron will be constructed next week, so a review of details is on the agenda. We have some new signage from the sponsors that must be included safely without digging a hole and because sub contractors are involved, we have to pin down the right day for them to come in.

Tomorrow the shed walls will go up, and I'll be able to stand in the structure for the first time. I'll be going over the details of the floral wall with Sandra, our Swinburne floristry teacher. Sandra's group of students will also be helping her construct a pergola across the front of the shed in dried gum nuts and the like - some 12 metres long. Floral exhibits are usually confined to the Exhibition building during the show, so this is something special that we'll have such a cutting edge display in an outdoor garden.

The Yarra Burn winery have supplied our fabulous full size (not full with wine sadly..) wine barrels that form the tables in our cafe. This idea was a family affair, hatched at Robe while catching up with my brother and father one weekend. There was a wine barrel table in the caravan park, and I was nutting out with them how to have a table with a standard grevillea growing up through the middle without it falling over. Dad remembered the wine barrels and so the glass of EB Red Pepper Shiraz was abandoned (criminal really) to go and check them out. The details were finessed somewhat in the course of the evening to hatch what is now a wonderfully quirky growing table that quite a few would like to see in their BBQ areas. Tomorrow I get to see one pretty much finished and that's going to be fun..

Plotting the growing table while the Shiraz breathes...

Have I mentioned the 2 tonne slab of red gum that's being craned in as our bar? Tomorrow perhaps..