‘It’s been a real labour of love’: World-renowned nursery hits the market after 31 years

A two-and-a-half-year search for a new home for themselves and Glenn’s nursery business led them to the central Victorian town. While it was rare for properties to come up for sale there, a local agent introduced them to the 1860s homestead Burnside a few months later.

“At that point, there was more fauna in the house than out of the house, and paddocks of weeds,” Canning says. “It was pretty rugged in the beginning but we absolutely fell in love with it.”

In the 31 years since, the 12.95-hectare property has been transformed into a world-renowned garden and nursery (fittingly named Lambley), a home for the couple and an art studio for Canning. “It’s been a real labour of love,” she says.

The garden, which is open to the public, has been designed to withstand the region’s dry climate and extreme temperatures and doubles as a playground for the couple’s 12 grandchildren.

“It’s been the most amazing place for the children to visit and stay over and run in the gardens,” Canning says.

Produce from the garden feeds both the family and the local community, with Glenn donating a crate of vegetables to the nearby town of Clunes each week. “They go out into the community where they’re most needed,” Canning says.

The acclaimed still-life painter says the garden has also had an “enormous influence” on her art, which she creates from a studio in the home with “beautiful southern light”.

“I can really just go out and pick anything I want and get pristine material for my work, which is a gift.”

The oriental poppies, which Glenn has grown especially for her, are some of her favourites among the thousands of plant varieties grown on the property.

“Some of the ones we grow are almost the size of a dinner plate and they have these beautiful markings and those pleated petals and extraordinary colour. I love them as a painting subject.”

While the garden and nursery are Glenn’s domain, Canning says she was “let loose” inside the home.

“We’ve done a really beautiful, big bathroom which is simply gorgeous and a couple of years ago we renovated the kitchen,” she says. An “enormous” sunroom features a three-metre-long table where the couple entertain, while a “charming sitting room with a big open fire” provides a place to rest after a hard day’s work.

“It’s just a really comfortable, lovely house to be in,” Canning says.

With Glenn set to retire following some recent health issues, the couple reluctantly put the property and nursery business on the market last week.

“It’s been a huge decision,” Canning says. “It’s going to be quite an enormous emotional detachment.”

Listing agent Andreana Donhardt from Buxton Ballarat says the sales campaign is off to a strong start.

“There’s been a lot of interest already. It’s a well-known nursery within Australia and internationally,” she says. “It’s such a beautiful location and spot.”

As well as the garden and four-bedroom bluestone and brick home, the sale includes a nursery with hot houses, poly and shade houses, a seed shed and a cool room, as well as a giant hayshed, former stables, a variety of equipment and tools, and 20 hectares of lucerne.

Donhardt predicts the opportunity will appeal to buyers looking to take over the established nursery business as well as those interested in further developing the site to include new features such as a cafe, accommodation or a wedding venue.