The Recovery Garden
Location: Victoria (VIC)
Size: 48 sqm
Status: Detailed design underway.
Starting Point: Gramina Personalised Plan
The Challenge
A compact 48sqm courtyard needed to support a highly active household. The brief included sauna, plunge pool, lawn, seating and flexible gathering space, all within a deeply shaded site beneath large canopy trees. The risk was overcrowding the garden with program, leaving no room to breathe. At the same time, the planting palette needed to thrive in heavy shade while delivering the lush, immersive atmosphere the clients were seeking.
Sauna and plunge integrated into the indoor–outdoor edge, supporting recovery and everyday use.
The Gramina Response
Using the Personalised Plan as a framework, the program was pushed deliberately to the edges. Sauna, plunge and deck form an active recovery spine along the boundary, wrapped in large leaf, temperate “jungle” planting suited to shade. A layered green buffer softens the laneway and filters western sun. By consolidating intensity around the perimeter, the centre remains open and flexible, able to shift between quiet retreat and social use. The garden reads as one clear outdoor room, held by atmosphere rather than built form.
Comfortable seating edge for relaxing individually or hosting
Plunge pool connected via timber deck, nestled in planting
Outdoor sauna nestled in planting
The Garden Now
The result is a compact but generous retreat that integrates directly into the clients’ daily routines. Heat, cold, rest and movement unfold within planting that feels immersive and private. Despite its size, the space remains open, adaptable and calm. What could have felt crowded now feels intentional, structured and deeply connected to how the clients live and recover.
Concept Plan - Program to the edges, open centre, layered temperate jungle planting.
Understorey planting. Temperate with a tropical feel
Layered planting. Temperate conditions with a tropical feel