A huge, remarkable pond –attractive, ecological, and sustainable, with naturally cleaned water from reeds and aeration.

Constructed four years ago on the sloping hillside using many tons of artfully placed Carey Gully stone, the Cascade Water Garden is remarkable – a big, beautifully landscaped billabong creating a wetland aquatic habitat.

Clear, unpolluted water is aerated as it spills over the huge rocks and cascades into a large body of water which is home to aquatic plants, invertebrates, fish and four species of frogs. The plants and reeds naturally remove impurities and with the aeration and movement, the water is of a quality akin to a high country mountain stream.

Lomandra, dianella, Brachyscome daisies, golden yellow Chrysocephalums and creeping Pultenaeas grow in pockets among the rock and provide habitat for small reptiles and invertebrates. Birds including kookaburras and ducks are frequent visitors, and local honeyeaters and the resident honeybee colonies find food among the local native species and iconic Australian plants such as kangaroo paw and grass trees.

This water garden is also a place for people to use and enjoy. Stone steps provide access down the sloping site, while a deck, lawn and entertainment area with pizza oven provide spots to pause and enjoy the serenity.

This ecologically sustainable water garden is an exemplar for gardens of the future. Solar panels and batteries produce all the power required to run the pumps and maintain the water garden, and provide electricity for the house. Rainwater is also collected and stored on site as part of the water system, and in addition there is a 200,000L underground tank. The owners are proud to achieve a project that has a neutral carbon offset.

The surrounding garden is always a work in progress but the wetland habitat exemplifies how an ecological water system inspired by nature can in itself be a feature.

The wetland habitat was awarded a 2020 Master Landscapers SA Award for its construction.