The nuts-and-bolts, feed-and-mulch aspects of growing plants and establishing a garden are not the main game here, with the discussion focusing on issues like our relationships to place, the philosophy of beauty and the allure of rule-breaking.

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While the conference has been run in Melbourne – mostly biennially – for more than 20 years, this is only the second one put on by Flanery, who acquired the event from Warwick and Sue Forge after attending it and finding she “just loved” the breadth of the topics discussed. “I thought, wow, that takes the garden and landscape world to another level.”

“I live in Yass and in gardens along the whole eastern seaboard I do think there is a lot of sameness. Many gardeners have become locked into a certain way of thinking. The conference can show you that there is a whole world of opportunity,” she says.

“Don’t despair over your camellia dying or your hydrangea not flowering there are so many species you can grow and so many techniques to try. I want to bring in the very best ideas from Australia and around the world and to lift the gardening experience.”

She also wants to inspire more young people into an “ongoing dialogue” about what we want from our own backyards as well as from public open space, urban trees and other municipal plantings.

Flanery says that while the rise of naturalism and of loose, abundant landscapes is one of the key gardening themes of our times, there are endless possibilities and no one answer. At the conference, everything will be on the table.

The Australian Landscape Conference is on 18 and 19 March at the Melbourne Convention and Exhibition Centre. There will also be garden tours on 17 March and masterclasses on 20 and 21 March. Go to outlandishventures.au for more information.

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