Landscaping Benowa
Renovating Benowa's established gardens and canal-front backyards, from the levels and walls to the planting and lighting, designed and built by one team.
Bella Terra Group is a landscaping company based in Nerang that designs and builds gardens in Benowa, from the front path to the water’s edge. Our Benowa gardens include stepping stones through groundcover above the water and a sandstone block wall around a fire pit. We handle the levels and drainage, retaining walls, paving, planting, turf and lighting for established homes, canal-front lots on Benowa Waters and riverside blocks along the Nerang River. Quotes are free and measured on site.
Much of Benowa was built between the late 1970s and the 1990s, and its population grew from a few hundred in the 1960s to nearly 10,000 by 2021. Many gardens are now decades old, with large trees, tired paving and drainage laid out for a different garden.
That makes many Benowa projects a renovation rather than a new build. Each one is part of our landscape design work on the Gold Coast: planned with you on site and built by our own team, so you deal with one company from the first visit to the last plant. Our owner, Dion McGirr, manages each project personally.
The ground
What Changes on a Benowa Block?
Benowa Waters and Lake Capabella were cut from old bends of the Nerang River, and parts of the suburb sit on what was once wetland. Much of the ground is low and slow to drain, and many lots back onto a canal.
On ground like that, the levels and drainage decide whether a new garden stays dry after a summer storm. On a canal lot, the revetment wall also decides how close a terrace, wall or pool surround can sit to the water.
So we settle the levels, the drainage and the wall first. The planting, paving and lighting are planned around them, which keeps the finished garden from flooding or loading a wall it shouldn’t.
The work
Our Landscaping Services in Benowa
Our own team carries out the work below under our QBCC builder’s licence, with the lighting wired by a licensed electrician. You don’t need to arrive with a plan. Tell us how you use the garden now and how you’d like to, and we’ll work out the rest together.
Canal-front and riverside gardens
On a Benowa Waters canal lot the revetment wall belongs to the owner, so anything built near it has to respect the wall and council's waterfront setback. We plan terraces, retaining walls and planting around those lines from the first site visit, and check the wall's condition before any weight goes near it.
Here's what our waterfront landscaping covers.
- Terraces and paving laid to fall away from the house and toward the water
- Low retaining walls and garden beds kept within the setback lines
- Planting that suits wet ground, wind and full sun on the water
- Stepping stones, groundcovers and lawn running down to the frontage
- Garden and path lighting, wired by a licensed electrician
Renovating an established garden
Many Benowa gardens were planted when the suburb was built and now have mature trees, worn paving and drainage that no longer suits the layout. A renovation keeps what still works, such as a good shade tree or a solid wall, and rebuilds the rest around how you use the space now.
Here's what our garden renovation work covers.
- A new layout for the front and back garden, worked out with you on site
- Removing old paving, garden edging and failed retaining walls
- Drainage and levels reworked for low, slow-draining ground
- Natural stone paving, crazy paving and exposed aggregate paths
- Hedges, screening plants and garden beds around the existing trees
- Natural turf, laid once the heavy work is complete
Every Benowa project starts with a visit to the property. Low ground, an ageing canal wall or a protected tree can change a design completely, and they’re only clear on site.
During the visit we walk the garden with you, measure it and look at the drainage, the wall and the trees. We talk through the layout, the materials and planting, how much upkeep each needs and what it costs, so you can choose what suits your budget.
The process
Our Process
Every Benowa project starts with how you want to use the garden. From there, it runs in three stages.
- Consultation and site assessment. We walk the garden with you and check the levels, drainage, trees, side access and, on a canal lot, the revetment wall.
- An itemised quote. Each part of the project is priced separately, so you can see what every element costs and stage the work if you prefer.
- The work itself. Our team builds it, Dion oversees each stage, and he hands the finished garden back to you.
What Do We Check on a Benowa Lot?
We check five things before a Benowa design is settled: the flood level, the revetment wall, protected trees, the soil on low ground and access for machinery. Each can change what is built and where, so they come before the quote rather than after it.
- The flood level for your lot. Council's flood level search gives the level for river flooding. It doesn't cover flash flooding from storms, so the surface drainage is designed as well.
- The revetment wall and setback lines. On a canal lot we look at the wall for cracks, scouring at its base or slumping behind it, and find the setback and waterway lines council maps for the lot.
- Trees that need approval. A tree over 4 metres tall with a trunk more than 40cm around generally needs council approval to remove or prune, so the design is worked out around them first.
- The soil on low ground. Low-lying land can contain acid sulfate soils, so a larger dig, such as a pool or a big change in level, is checked before it starts.
- Access for machinery. Many established homes have narrow side access, so we plan how machinery and materials reach the backyard before the work is priced.
Recent work
Recent Landscaping in Benowa
Four views of our Benowa gardens, from the water to the front path. We keep our customers’ details private, so the photos do the talking.
Benowa: stepping stones through groundcover, rosemary and young trees above the water.
Benowa: boulders, stepping stones and groundcover filling a side garden beside the house.
Benowa: a sandstone block retaining wall and silver groundcover around a fire pit.
Benowa: an exposed aggregate entry path edged in sandstone between clipped hedges.
Why Bella Terra Group
Choosing Bella Terra Group in Benowa
Our owner, Dion McGirr, has been in the trade for over 14 years, and our Benowa work ranges from waterfront planting to sandstone retaining walls and new entry paths. You can see more of it in our project gallery.
Each project is designed and built by the same company, under QBCC licence 15452813, with Dion managing the work on site. One client wrote that “the attention to detail and creative design truly set them apart.” Another wrote that Bella Terra “helped us with design and constructed the full landscape to a very high standard.”
Quotes are free, measured on site and itemised, with no obligation to go ahead.
Questions
Frequently Asked Questions
How much does landscaping cost in Benowa?
The cost depends on the size of the garden, the materials and the site itself. In Benowa the biggest variables are whether a canal wall needs an engineer's check, how much drainage or fill low ground needs, whether trees need council approval and how easily machinery can reach the backyard. We visit, measure and provide an itemised quote at no charge.
Can you landscape near a canal revetment wall in Benowa Waters?
Yes, within limits the wall sets. The owner is responsible for the revetment wall, council maps a waterfront setback and a waterway line for each canal lot, and it can ask for an engineer's certificate that the wall can carry what is proposed. A retaining wall inside the waterfront setback needs building approval, so we plan walls, terraces and paving to keep their load off the revetment wall.
Source: City of Gold Coast.
Does flooding affect landscaping in Benowa?
It can. Benowa Waters and Lake Capabella were cut from old bends of the Nerang River, and parts of the suburb sit on former wetland, so levels and drainage matter more here than on a hillside block. Check your lot on council's flood maps or order a flood level search, and plan for storm runoff as well, because the search covers river flooding only.
Can I remove the large trees in my Benowa garden?
Not always without approval. On the Gold Coast a tree over 4 metres tall with a trunk more than 40cm around, measured 1.3 metres above the ground, generally needs council approval to remove or prune, unless an exemption applies, such as a tree close to the house or along the boundary fence. We check the trees before the layout is settled, so the design doesn't depend on clearing one that has to stay.
Benowa and the Suburbs Around It
We’re based in Nerang, a short drive west of Benowa, and we work across the whole suburb: the established streets north of Ashmore Road, Benowa Waters and Lake Capabella, and the riverside blocks near Royal Pines.
If you’re looking for landscapers in Benowa, we also work in the suburbs around it, including Bundall, Ashmore, Carrara.
Further afield? Get in touch. We cover most of the Gold Coast, and you’ll get a straight answer either way.
Written by Dion McGirr, who runs Bella Terra Group and has been in the trade for over 14 years. You can talk to Dion directly about your project.
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