A brief history
  • 30 October 1916 - Subdivision LP7493 surveyed and approved by Shire of Lillydale on 31 December 1916. This land becomes part of lot 24.
  • 24 February 1917 - Part Crown Allotment 23A2 owned by John Edmond Taylor and Australias Sharp
  • 1916 - lot 26 created with subdivision LP 7493
  • 14 November 1927 - Lot 26 (3 acres 0 roods 3 perches) conveyed from John Edmond Taylor and Australias Sharp to Edna M argaret W alling
  • February1928 - 'Sonning: a nursery garden at Mooroolbark', Australian Home Beautiful, February 1928, has plan by Walling 'rather in the nature of a forecast than a record'.
  • 18 December [c1936? - year not shown on copy] - unsourced and imprecisely dated newspaper cutting, copy on National Trust file, with long article on Bickleigh Vale:
 PictureImage courtesy of State Library Victoria
The gardens of "Sonning" provide as well practically all the flowering perennials for the Bickleigh Vale Cottages, a circumstance very pleasing to Miss Walling, who, like all true gardeners, dreads the necessity of consigning any growing thing, no matter how superfluous, to the rubbish heap.In such spare time as she has left over from her village-building hobby Miss Walling is building a rock garden at "Sonning". Amongst other delights it is to have a thyme lawn. Already the tiny fragrant plants are growing vigorously and beginning to fill up the level space at the base of the half-formed rockery. In another nursery are rows and rows of flower pots containing the tiny alpine plants which will one day find tenure in the rock garden. Below the cottage, too, a special lawn is being nursed into being to become the stage of an outdoor theatre for classical dancing. Close-growing gums and shrubs form a natural back-cloth, and grassy lawns slope down conveniently on all other sides to make a perfect amphitheatre. The gardens of "Sonning" provide as well practically all the flowering perennials for the Bickleigh Vale Cottages, a circumstance very pleasing to Miss Walling, who, like all true gardeners, dreads the necessity of consigning any growing thing, no matter how superfluous, to the rubbish heap.
  • 1953 - allotment divided into two, this portion now lot 2 (LP26O46)
  • 16 March 1956 - land transferred Walling? to Beatrice Ruby De Wan (vol 8106 fol 868)
  • April 1998 - sold

​to be continued...
Picture
c 2004
Bickleigh Vale, Sonning garden, September 2019
September 2019
Bickleigh Vale, Sonning driveway, September 2019
Septembe 2019

2004 Open Garden

2004 was the last time the beatiful Sonning garden was open to the public. Whilst the house itself had been much modified from Edna Walling's 'Sonning II' cottage by that time, it's still strikingly beautiful and her garden spectacular. These images were recorded by Allan Groves at the time.

The Building of Sonning 2

"Australian Home Beautiful", January 1st 1936, pp32-36
"SOME years ago I wrote a little story about the building of Sonning entitled 'The House That Jill Built." And now here is the story about the building of Sonning 2, for in the midst' of winter the former cottage was burnt to the ground. All efforts to save the little cottage were unavailing against the fierce wind - all thought of the treasures within ,were temporarily forgotten in the anxiety for the little kitten who had been fast asleep on the top of a wardrobe. The kitten was saved by the presence of mind of a student who was with me at the time, and soon after everything else was gone. With small prospect of sleep that night we decided to occupy our minds with the planning of a new cottage, and by 3 a.m. the plan was complete." Read more...

Edna Walling, 1 January 1936
​