SPECIAL SECTION: OUTDOOR & GARDEN
Space for the whole family
Outdoor rooms to outdoor living
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‘ Outdoor rooms’ have been popular for a while now – the concept of using landscaping and plants to define zones within a garden area. But these days, we’ re making‘ outdoor rooms’ into versatile alfresco living spaces.“ People really want their outdoor spaces to be usable year-round,” says Martin Semken of Semken Landscaping( semken. com. au).“ We’ re creating outdoor spaces for families to gather in, so we’ ve [ increasingly ] been including full outdoor kitchens with undercover or all-weather dining spaces.”
Comfort is also key in these outdoor living spaces, says Emmaline Bowman from STEM Landscape Architecture and Design( stemlandscape. com).“ We’ ve seen growing demand for comfortable seating and versatile gathering spaces where people can relax, enjoy and watch their gardens,” she explains.
Improve your space with a scenic outdoor kitchen and dedicated seating, or a highquality outdoor setting made with UV-resistant fabric. Tabletop fire pits are also rising in popularity, helping Australians to keep things cosy in cooler weather.
And it’ s not just the adults who are being encouraged out into the garden; kids are also a higher priority in garden design these days.“ Even in high-end landscapes, we’ re adding in-ground trampolines, custom play equipment and small veggie patches,” says Semken, adding that it’ s all about involving kids at the heart of the garden, rather than relegating them to the back corner next to the shed.
Plants are growing in popularity
Expansive water-hungry lawns are out and stunning, pollinating plants are in.“ There’ s been a real shift away from flowerless gardens,” says La Muxlow of La Muxlow Garden Design( lamuxlow. com. au).“ I think this is a reflection of my clients wanting to have a positive ecological impact in all aspects of their lives.” Bowman agrees:“ Meadowstyle and flower-rich gardens are trending and there’ s a big emphasis on native Australian plants,” she says.“ Soft colour palettes of silvers, whites and mauves are also very on trend.”
When incorporating these elements into your own garden, think about how they can enhance the space, creating an oasis for all.
Outdoor studios are also increasingly popular, especially when nestled into a beautiful garden space.“ People want these studios to have great views of their garden and make the most of the outdoor space they have invested in,” Semken adds.
Thankfully, we’ re not replacing our large lawns with concrete. Nadia Cole from Platylobium Landscape Design( platylobium. com. au) says there’ s been a real shift towards minimising areas of impermeable surfaces like concrete and creating gardens centred on plants and permeable surfaces; think small lawns, high-quality artificial turf, gravel, decking and stone steppers.“ The result is a garden that is cool, lush and inviting, providing habitat for wildlife and soaking up rainfall to reduce run-off,” she says. >
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20 | MAY / JUNE 2025 COSTCO CONNECTION