These wonderful cooler climate gardens, covering over twelve hectares of prime Blue Mountains territory were designed in the 1930s by renowned Australian/Danish garden architect Paul Sorenson. 

The brief was to create a weekend retreat that would be redolent of distant European gardens and combine it effectively with the natural flora of this beautiful part of the world.

This is Sorenson's largest and most famous garden design featuring a mixture of meandering woodland walks and formal terraces. It is difficult terrain, being quite steeply sloping at times, but he succeeded magnificently by creating easy walk paths, only needing a limited number of steps to create a garden that is invigorating and restful in one. The key assets are the highland views across the Jamison Valley and Sorenson lost no opportunity to take advantage of them.

Essentially he created a series of massive rock platforms that form elegantly spacious terraces, all held in place with the excavated ironstone that now feature in immaculately detailed retaining walls.

Today the house and gardens are managed by the National Trust and can be enjoyed all year round, but are particularly spectacular in springtime when they feature as part of the Leura Garden Festival.

From early October the southern slopes are a mass of colour, planted with large areas of Rhododendron and Azalea. Elsewhere sweeping beds of Tulips and lawns speckled with Daffodils and Bluebells paint vibrant backdrops to the stunning displays of Cherry blossom, Magnolia and Wisteria.

Yet it seems that whenever you look up there's another glimpse of the Jamison Valley disappearing into the shimmering blue haze that gives this region its name.

Of the various terraces, the Studio Terrace features a small Garden Theatre that has been constructed with living wings of topiary cyprus and a classical arch and fountain at the back of the stage. Small concerts and drama productions are often enjoyed here throughout summer.

The Agapanthus Terrace comes into its own in late November - early December and the Lilac Terrace as the name suggests contains many varieties of Lilac which flower in spring along with the many tulips. This terrace then transforms in early summer with the heritage roses which fill the air with fragrance and colour.

The Art Deco Everglade House is set on a lower terrace and provides location for the cafe where visitors can 'take tea' on white wrought iron furniture set neatly on lush grass lawns. It makes for a splendid sight as European formal gardens meet 1930s modernism, all set against a native Australian backdrop.

If designer, Paul Sorensen could see his work today I'm sure he'd be delighted. Many aspects have changed over the years but scores of his signature great trees remain, specially imported from nurseries around the world and combined with the best of our natives.

This is one of Australia's very special garden estates and visitors are doubly lucky that it is surrounded by pristine bushland that is now part of the greater Blue Mountains World Heritage site.