Design and adaptation, Architecture and Landscape

Strathdon House and Orchard precinct represents a significant historical and cultural asset to the City of Whitehorse, and is one of the only remaining examples of a homestead and orchard, representative of early settlement in the area.

The homestead and orchard were acquired by Council using a federal grant to celebrate Australia’s bicentenary, with the aim of preserving the asset and opening it for public use. The house and orchard have a unique location at the entrance to the Healesville Freeway Reservation.

The vision for the reserve is that it will have a variety of future uses, including shared pedestrian and bike pathways, nature trails, community gathering spaces, activity spaces and dedicated conservation areas. As such, the considered development of the precinct will ensure it becomes a key location in the municipality for recreation, as well as the gateway to the reserve.

Adaptation of the house included the removal of a timber extension and the addition of a new bay window, which increases the internal space and helps address the garden more. The rear garden is part of the architectural solution for providing public-use activity areas, with a formal lawn helping the transition from interior to exterior.

Strathdon House was surrounded by a formal cultivated landscape. Our landscape specialist Michael Cook started by identifying the historic ‘bones’ of the place. He says, “There are layers that reveal occupation and the logic over time: alternative crops, alternative energy use. So this is an opportunity to reinforce these and use them to bring the landscape together.” Investigations were greatly helped by the historic photographs held in the Stathdon House Collection, which depict the garden at various times before World War II.

In 2020, Lovell Chen completed an assessment of significance for the collection.