Garden Class Presenters

Anna Thirkell-Johnston Anna is one of our senior nursery staff at Bulleen Art and Garden. Her degree in horticulture has nurtured a love of the outdoors and gardening and she brings this knowledge through her role as a consultant who visits clients on site at their homes. Her own extensive gardening experience has come from more than her own backyard: in 2005 she worked in gardens in England, where she was able to pass on her knowledge of sustainable gardening practices to Londoners in drought.

Gavin Haycraft Arguably the staff member with the longest history at Bulleen Art & Garden, Gavin Haycraft started just before his 18th birthday... way back in 1974! During this time Gavin has worked independently in landscaping and garden maintenance, while completing studies at Burnley Horticultural College. He now works at Bulleen Art & Garden on Saturdays only as a Senior Nurseryman, and has gained notoriety for his working knowledge of garden hand tools. He has a huge collection of many of the old and new tools which get used in gardening and can tell you which are worth using and which are just fads. Gavin has become our Tool Consultant and customers come from far and wide on Saturdays to get his opinion on choosing tools for particular tasks.

Maria Ciavarella Maria is the author of Maria’s Musings in our monthly garden newsletter and our reigning SGA compost queen. She has given talks and organised our Kid’s garden days. She is a trained science teacher and is passionate about gardening and the environment. Maria has a young family who are all being instilled with a love of gardening. Most importantly, she is Italian, with a typically Italian love of good food and its preparation.

Joy Froebel Joy has extensive experience in the gardening sector. Although only joining Bulleen Art & Garden recently, she has worked in the nursery retail sector for 18 years. Her qualifications as a Landscape Architect (Bachelor of Landscape Architecture Hons RMIT) and her work as a Garden Consultant throughout her working life authenticates her experience. She has given numerous talks alongside well known gardening names such as John Patrick. Joy is also the proud mother of two girls, aged 4 and 7.

Laurel Coad Laurel has over 12 years of retail nursery experience and has presented many gardening classes during that time. As well as horticultural and permaculture qualifications, Laurel recently completed a Diploma of Conservation and Land Management at RMIT. She is passionate about produce gardening and habitat gardens for wildlife. She loves to get out bushwalking as much as possible and being out in the garden with her young daughter.

Karen Sutherland Karen dug her first vegie patch at 8 years old, and has developed this into an obsession, with more than 100 edible and useful plants in her north suburban garden. Working as a gardener and landscaper for over 20 years, she now focusses on edible garden design - inspiring and helping others to grow their own produce. Check out her work at www.edibleedendesign.com

Diana Cotter Diana trained in Amenity Horticulture in Britain over 25 years ago….. back in the days when it was believed any garden problem could be answered with a chemical spray! She set up her own business designing, planting and maintaining gardens in London. All this experience was brought to Australia 17 years ago, and much more has been learnt since. Diana has presented workshops for Sustainable Gardening Australia for several years and has recently joined BAAG as a garden consultant, specialising in sustainable design and advising on new approaches to gardening... all without the slightest hint of a spray!

Richard Bell For the past 25 years, Richard Bell has conducted his own Water Garden business, wholesaling and retailing water plants. He has also designed water gardens and maintained water features in big private gardens and public buildings. He will tell you that he is never astonished at what is dredged up from the bottom of a public water feature! Richard has featured on the ABC's Gardening Australia and radio gardening programs. His pond maintenance company is the biggest in Victoria and he is deservedly looked on as an expert in all things watery. Richard and his wife Sally and family recently made a tree-change and have opened up a nursery in the hamlet of Newlyn, near Daylesford .

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