About 14 minutes from our Broadmeadow yard
Your Warners Bay garden probably comes down to two things: the lake view and the slope. Fernline Landscapes builds terraces, outdoor rooms and gardens that keep the water in sight, about 14 minutes from our Broadmeadow yard.
NSW contractor licence, structural landscaping: Lic. 000000C (demo)
In Warners Bay the lake is the best thing in your backyard. A good garden frames it, and never plants it out.
Warners Bay sits on the eastern shore of Lake Macquarie, with cafes along The Esplanade and a shared path along the foreshore that forms part of the council's Booragul to Belmont cycle route. Behind the water, the streets climb away from the lake, so many backyards slope down towards the view. Older houses line the established streets, and newer ones have gone up as the suburb has grown around its foreshore centre. Down on the flat ground near the foreshore, lake flooding is part of the plan.
Most Warners Bay gardens are built around one thing: the lake. Whether you can see it from the kitchen or just from the end of the yard, the best garden here keeps the view open and gives you somewhere good to sit and look at it. We start every design from the spot you'll use most, usually a table or a seat at the edge of the paving, and work outward from there. Taller planting goes to the sides for privacy. Between you and the water, everything stays low.
That also means thinking about the evening. A lot of people here sit outside after work, so we place lighting, shade and seating for the late sun across the lake, not the midday sun.
Away from The Esplanade, the ground rises, and many backyards fall towards the lake. The slope is what gives you the view, and it takes some work to make it usable. We set out the levels with a laser, build low retaining walls to make two or three flat areas, and run drainage behind each wall so water doesn't build up and push it over. Under the state's Codes SEPP, each wall can skip approval only if it's 600mm or lower, at least 2m horizontally from the next wall, 1m from the boundary and 40m from the lake, so on blocks near the water the walls usually go through approval. Steps between the levels are built wide enough to carry a plate of food without looking at your feet.
The slope also decides where the water goes. On a block that falls towards the lake, storm water from the street and the roof runs straight through your yard. We catch it at the top with a drain, carry it past the walls in pipe, and let it out where the council's stormwater system can take it, so the lawn at the bottom isn't a swamp after every storm.
On the flat streets close to the water, the question changes from slope to flooding. Council policy covers lake flooding and tidal inundation on this land, and its online flood tool will show you what your own lot faces. For a garden, that mostly means choosing plants and surfaces that cope with a wet spell, and not raising the ground in a way that sends water onto the house next door. We read your flood summary before we draw, so the design fits the block from the start.
Our yard sloped straight down to the lake and we never used it. Two low walls later we've got a flat lawn and a table where we watch the sunset.
Steve, Warners Bay · Sample review
Two or three low walls that turn a slope down to the view into level ground for a table, a lawn and a garden bed, without blocking the water from the house.
Retaining walls in Warners BayPaving, a pergola frame and built-in seating placed where you actually sit at sunset, with the downpipes and drainage sorted before the paving goes down.
Decks and pergolas in Warners BayPlanting, mulch and paving chosen for a yard that can sit wet after the lake comes up, with levels kept close to what's there so water isn't pushed next door.
Garden design in Warners BayLake Macquarie City Council has a free Property Flooding Information tool that gives a flood summary for your lot. We read it before we design anything for a yard near the foreshore, and talk you through what it means for the garden.
Yes, by screening the sides and keeping the view line low. We plant taller screening along the side fences and keep everything between the house and the water under hip height, so you see the lake from the deck and not the neighbour's windows.
Sometimes, but not freely. Raising a yard on flood-affected land can push water onto your neighbours, and the council can require approval for it. We usually work with the levels you have and lift just the beds and paths that need it.
It depends on the fall, but two or three low walls usually beat one tall one: they cost less and give you separate flat levels for a lawn and a seating area. A low wall only skips approval if it's 600mm or under, at least 2m from the next wall and at least 40m from the lake, so close to the water expect an approval either way. We measure the fall on site with a laser before we suggest a number.
Paving laid with a proper fall and a free-draining base, or permeable options like gravel and spaced stepping stones. On low blocks we avoid sealing the whole yard, because the water needs somewhere to soak away when the ground is already full.
Often, but the rules on setbacks and size depend on your block and how close it is to the water. We check your address against the council's controls first, and if the pergola needs approval, we tell you before you've paid for a design.
A few photos and a rough idea is enough. We'll ring to book a free site visit, then send a fixed quote with a drawing.