By Luke Voogt
For last the 40 years Elizabeth Vorrath has transformed Brambledale Farm from acres of paddocks into vibrant garden full of colour.
But its the views of Port Phillip Bay that make her garden special, she says.
“Lots of people have got better gardens than me – but they haven’t got the view.”
Elizabeth bought the property with husband John in 1974, so he could be near the surf.
John, a 76-year-old former surgeon, still enjoys surfing with his son and grandson out on the bay.
He also received a Medal of the Order of Australia in February, having invented a scope which revolutionised eye, nose and throat surgery.
But despite being “the famous one” of the couple, says Elizabeth, he is mostly relegated to cutting grass.
“He’s not a gardener and he’s not a farmer,” she says
“He mows the grass because he has to – otherwise I get upset.”
“And he’s quite good with chainsaw – under strict supervision,” she adds.
The couple moved from Melbourne to Geelong in the 1970s so John could set up his private practice.
When they bought the property on the Bellarine Highway, near the outskirts Clifton Springs, it was a sheep and potato farm with 85 hectares of empty paddocks.
“There was hardly any trees at all and it had quite bad erosion, because of the potatoes,” Elizabeth says.
The couple built a small “weekender“, before building a permanent home there years later, in 1989.
They built their current house on the middle of the slope, finding a compromise between the best views of the bay and protection from strong winds.
“When you go up on top of the hill the view is incredible,” Elizabeth says.
“But the winds can blow you away.”
The couple love living in the Bellarine and catching up with friends, most of who live in Point Lonsdale.
“We feel like we belong here,” Elizabeth says.
“You sort of feel you live in the country but you’re right near the city.”
Elizabeth is constantly changing her garden, which she likened to a painter’s canvas or an embroiderer’s tapestry.
“I find it creative – as well as a hell of a lot of work,” she said.
For Elizabeth, who has a chemistry degree, getting her hands dirty is the best part of gardening.
“I know I’m creating an artificial environment but when you’re feeling down it can be great to get out in nature and get your hands in the soil,” she says.
“Even weeding can be fun at times – I think gardeners would probably understand that.”
The 77-year-old still does most of the work herself, despite recent knee surgery.
“I had such a brilliant surgeon that it’s given me a new lease on life,” she said.
The garden is colourful mixture of native, Mediterranean plants and a number of trees, which have grown large since Elizabeth planted them decades ago.
“We can’t have things like azaleas or camellias,” she says.
“They just say nup, we don’t like it here.”
The couple’s one surviving whippet, Wol, loves running around Brambledale chasing rabbits.
“It’s a doggies’ paradise down here for him,” Elizabeth says.
Elizabeth has put the garden on display for the last decade or so for local children’s charity Cottage by the Sea.
She’s one of a number of property owners on the Bellarine who do so.
“It’s worth making the effort for them,” she says.
“They’re a great organisation.”
