Hand Made Gardens · 8 Mudge St, McLaren Vale SA 5171 · 0413 115 680 · Quotes Monday to Saturday
Landscaping Adelaide's southern suburbs since 1981
Our southern jobs are a short run up Main South Road or the Southern Expressway from our base at the bottom end of this patch, which is why so much of our work over the years has been here: Reynella, Hallett Cove, Happy Valley, Aberfoyle Park and Port Noarlunga, plus the foothills suburbs of Coromandel Valley and Craigburn Farm. Martyn Hand quotes and builds every job personally with a small handpicked team.
The ground changes a lot over that distance. Near the coast and the Onkaparinga River at Port Noarlunga the soil is sandy and drains freely. Up toward the Hills foothills, below Happy Valley Reservoir and through Aberfoyle Park and Craigburn Farm, it turns to heavier, reactive clay, and the blocks get bigger and steeper. Paving bases, retaining wall footings and drainage all get prepared to suit, because a base that works on sand can crack on clay.
Services we do most across the southern suburbs
Paving
Driveways, paths, patios and courtyards, base-prepared for local soil conditions.
Retaining Walls
Practical solutions for the sloped blocks common toward the Hills foothills.
Timber Decks
Built to last, sized to your space.
Irrigation
Reliable watering systems for gardens of any size.
Garden Lighting
Highlight your garden after dark.
Garden Features
Water features, garden beds and finishing touches.
Lawns
Instant lawn for your front or back garden.
Small Earthworks
Site prep, levelling and drainage.
Landscape Design
Planting plans tailored to your soil, climate and site.
Southern suburbs projects
In Craigburn Farm, on the foothills side of the southern suburbs, a curved concrete block retaining wall with bullnose coping holds the slope below a glass pool fence. More on retaining walls →
Down on the coast at Port Noarlunga, a curved rendered seat wall with built-in hardwood bench seating wraps a circular firepit area, with new native beds planted around it. More on garden features →
For a full southern case study, see the winery garden makeover in Willunga South, where the reactive clay needed a cement-treated rubble base over geofabric under the paving.
Southern suburbs landscaping questions
Which southern suburbs do you actually cover?
McLaren Vale, Reynella, Willunga, Hallett Cove, Happy Valley, Aberfoyle Park and Port Noarlunga are all regular territory. Hand Made Gardens is based right in McLaren Vale itself.
Do you handle sloping blocks in the southern suburbs and Hills foothills?
Yes. Many blocks through Coromandel Valley, Craigburn Farm and the southern Hills foothills are on a slope, which is exactly what retaining walls and staged earthworks are for.
How far are the southern suburbs from your base?
From McLaren Vale it's about 15 minutes to Reynella and Port Noarlunga, about 20 minutes to Hallett Cove and Happy Valley, and 25 to 30 minutes to Aberfoyle Park and Craigburn Farm.
Do you provide free quotes across the southern suburbs?
Yes, a free, written, no-obligation quote, usually about 15 minutes on site to measure up.
Are you licensed and insured?
Yes. Builders Licence BLD 51302, covering all landscape construction work, and fully insured.
Where we work in the southern suburbs
What clients say
Highly recommend Hand Made Gardens. From first meeting and quote, to completion, Martyn was enthusiastic and motivated about the design and landscaping of our front yard.
Ezza O, Google review
Read all our reviews on Google →
Nearby areas we also cover
McLaren Vale
Home base, plus McLaren Flat, Willunga and the wine region around it.
Eastern suburbs
Glen Osmond, Burnside, St Peters, Kensington and Unley.
Western suburbs
Seacliff, Somerton Park, Henley Beach, West Lakes and Semaphore.
Got a garden job in mind, somewhere across Adelaide's southern suburbs?
Book a Site Consultation