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• Comment: There is also content copied from the above link. Please rephrase it in your own words. Thanks, wia (talk) 12:49, 13 April 2015 (UTC)

Ellis Stones (Ellis Andrew Stones, October 1, 1895 – April 5, 1975), was a constructor of private and public rock gardens and a conservationist whose work and ideas profoundly influenced approaches to public landscaping in Australia.^[1] Based in Melbourne, Australia he was one of the founding fathers of the Australian landscaping style.

Ellis Stones, was born in Wodonga, Victoria. His father was Thomas James Stones a customs officer, born in Victoria. His mother was Hannah May, née Downs, also born in Victoria. He grew up in Essendon, Victoria. He attended Moonee Ponds West Primary School and worked as an apprentice carriage builder with the Victorian Railways.^[1], ^[2]

On 25 April 1915 he was a rower in the first boat of the second wave in the Gallipoli Campaign.^[3] He took a bullet in his left knee which went on to cause him troubles for the rest of his life.^[2]

During World War II Stone worked in:

• Volunteer Defence Corps
• Civil Construction Corps^[2]

After the war he returned to work as a carpenter. While working on a house in Heidelberg, the landscape designer Edna Walling asked him to build a stone wall.^[2] Impressed by his natural aptitude she employed him again on many other jobs as he gradually established his own practice as a constructor and designer of rock gardens.^[4]

Stones collaborated for many years with Walling, constructing many of the rock outcrops, walls and ponds in the gardens she designed.^[2] Among the many gardens in which he did rock work for Walling were:

• the Donaldson, Anderson and Marshall gardens in Heidelberg
• the Beattie, Darling and Anderson gardens in Toorak
• the Lewis garden in Malvern
• the 'Hillsborough' or 'Silver Birches' gardens in Balwyn
• gardens in Benalla, Skipton and Olinda.^[2],^[5]

In Australian Home Beautiful of December 1938 Walling wrote: "It is a rare thing this gift for placing stones and strange that a man possessing it should bear the name Stones... Lovely as formal gardens can be, it is these informal schemes, in which boulders form so important a part, that appeal so tremendously... they give us the atmosphere of the country, and the refreshment of mind derived from such". (Latreille, 1990^[2] p35)

Stones inspiration for garden landscaping came from the natural world. In the introduction to his book Australian Landscape Design,^[6] he writes ' ... more can be learnt by observing nature than through any other form of teaching. When you see pleasing contours with perhaps an attractive grouping of trees, ask yourself why they please you. It may be their texture or perhaps their shape, or a wandering track which may give special interest to the landscape. Look for the reason. It may be that the track winds around a tree which casts shadows on the path, or past an outcrop of boulders." (Stones 1971,^[6] p10)

In her Foreword to The Ellis Stones Garden Book published in 1976^[7] shortly after his death, Thistle Harris elaborates "Ellis Stones abhorred geometrical patterns as much as does nature on a grand scale, and straight paths, trimmed borders and serried ranks of plants are never to be found in his gardens. Curving paths lead forever; informal clumps of plants, bending intimately towards each other; lichen-covered rocks of geological antiquity--these things distinguish his designs." (Harris, 1976,^[7] p8)

In addition to creating many hundreds of gardens throughout Melbourne, through his writings (for instance as an occasional then regular contributor to Australian Home Beautiful and later with his books), Stones must have influenced hundreds of thousands of home gardeners. His plant nursery in Lower Heidelberg Road helped to make native plants more available to the general public, and allowed him to provide brief advice to a large number of customers who had admired his work in others' gardens or who read his articles but could not afford to engage him.(Latreille, 1990,^[2] p96-7) Stones' advice on the design of home gardens has been distilled as follows: "* Think of a courtyard as a room without a ceiling.

• Use timber for its beauty as well as its utility.
• No garden is too small to have water in it.
• When placing rocks, bury more underground than you will see above ground.
• A garden should always have as sitting spot." (Latreille, 2013,^[8] p 177)

As Anne Vale details in her book, Exceptional Garden Makers, Stones inspired a whole generation of younger garden designers.^[9] Stones was a foundation lecturer in the landscape design course at RMIT. His employees Bob Grant and David Leach went on to develop successful landscape businesses, Leach's work living on in many of the beautiful parks and gardens in the Eltham area. (Vale,2012,^[9] p 105) NSW landscaper designer Michael Bligh's career in design was prompted by coming across Stones' book while looking for something to read on his way home on the train.(Vale, 2012,^[9] p 104) While not formally trained himself, Stone supported the establishment of the Australian Institute of Landscape Architects. Among others, he trained landscape designer, Bev Hanson^[10] and pioneer of the bush garden concept Gordon Ford whose influence lives on into the 21st century through the work of contemporary landscape architect, Sam Cox.

Merchant Builders Pty Ltd was an initiative of Melbourne businessman David Yenken. After discussions with prominent Melbourne architect Robin Boyd and his young employee Graeme Gunn, Yenken established the company which had the vision of providing architect-designed houses at project home prices.^[2] He assembled a team of architects to design 50 basic house plans. The architects consulted included:

* Charles Duncan
* Daryl Jackson and Evan Walker
* McGlashan Everist
* Graeme Gunn[8]

Ellis Stones was commissioned to undertake landscaping in many of the Merchant home developments.

Elliston Estate was one of the most well-known Merchant home developments, named after Ellis Stones himself. Swamped by protests from residents when the Rosanna Golf Club was to be subdivided for housing, the Heidelberg City Council agreed to buy the golf course, retain half of it for a park and sell the rest to Merchant builders for on-selling to the public. Ellis Stones was employed as a consultant to advise on landscaping the park and developing the streetscapes and gardens so that 'gardens streets and park' would 'flow into and through each other'.(Stones, 1971,^[6] p193) Elliston includes the following streets; Bachli, Cremin, Ferrier, Pickworth, Hartley, Nagle and Devlin Courts; Stanton, Crampton, Phillips and Von Nida Crescents; the west side of Finlayson Street; and Thompson Drive (all in Rosanna)^[20]

The MMBW employed him to landscape the Salt Creek instead of its usual practice of barrel draining.^[23]

Ellis Stones was deeply concerned about the destruction of the Australian landscape. In the introduction to Australian Garden Design, the book Stones wrote (with extensive photographic illustrations by Ted Rotherham), published in 1971,^[6] he writes "Before the commencement of any major project that encroaches on the landscape there should be formed a panel consisting of persons representing every profession concerned with the project, to discuss and advise on the best means of carrying out the project with the least damage to the landscape. A landscape architect should certainly be included in any such panel, as he is in other countries which are deeply concerned about the preservation of their natural flora and fauna." (Stones, 1971^[6] p8)

He goes on to say, "The ideal way to design a garden is in consultation with the architect or builder, before operations have commenced, so that the building may be sited in a way that will give plenty of scope for the garden, preserve some of the existing trees if the area is a wooded one, or emphasize any other strong features that may be evident in the natural contours." (Stones, 1971,^[6] p 12)

Stones was outspoken critic of the Melbourne Metropolitan Board of Works (MMBW), lamenting the destruction and degradation of the Yarra River environs and creeks throughout suburban Melbourne.^[24] He was the first president of the Ivanhoe River Parklands Protection League in 1955 to prevent the destruction of Chelsworth Park.^[2]

He served as a committee member for the Save the Yarra league and also assisted the Yarra Valley Freeway Action Group. (Latreille,1990 ^[2] p119) For the Tullamarine Freeway he wrote to Lord Mayor Ron Walker late in 1974 suggesting "the whole length... as a beautiful bushland setting, with the statuesque river red gums a main feature... to welcome visitors to Australia" (Latreille, 1990,^[2] p 246).

His very last job was landscaping Salt Creek in the Rosanna Parklands, a job approved by his former adversary the MMBW.(Latreille, 1990,^[2] p 247) Not long after his death, the MMBW preserved a large amount of land along the Yarra Valley in a series of metropolitan parks.(Latreille,1990 ^[2] p119)

Stones posthumously received the Royal Australian Institute of Architect's Robin Boyd environmental medal (Latreille, 2013^[8] p 169)

A memorial plaque honouring his work^[25] can be found in a rock garden in Chemlsworth Park near his former home in Ivanhoe.^[26].

The Ellis Stones rockery in Burnley Gardens was also created to honour his contribution to landscape design in Australia.^[27]

The Ellis Stones Memorial Award is offered biennially to a landscape student for an outstanding piece of research.(Latreille, 1990 ^[2], p 249).

* Stones, Ellis, 1971, Australian Garden Design, South Melbourne, with photographs by Ted Rotherham
* Stones, Ellis, 1976   The Ellis Stones Garden Book, Nelson Australia, West Melbourne 
* Stones, Ellis, unpublished manuscript "Priority Landscaping[8]
* Latreille, Anne, 1990, The Natural Garden – Ellis Stones: His Life and Work, Penguin Australia, Ringwood, Melbourne
* Latreille, Anne, 2013, Garden Voices Australian Designers- their stories, Penguin Australia, Ringwood, Melbourne
* Saniga, Andrew 2012, Making Landscape Architecture in Australia, UNSW Press, Sydney
* Vale, Anne, 2013, Exceptional Australian Garden Makers Lothian, Middle Park, Melbourne

* Dr Andrew Saniga, University of Melbourne http://www.findanexpert.unimelb.edu.au/display/publication258502#time

Wikimedia Commons has media related to Ellis Stones.

Wikiquote has quotations related to Ellis Stones.

• [1] quotes
• [2] National Library of Australia Trove
• [3] Australian National Botanic Gardens
• [4] Iconic Australian Landscape Architects – Ellis Stones
• [5] Ellis Stones, National Portrait Gallery
• [6] Garden edging can make life neater and easier | Executive Living | The Australian
• [7] Honor for Ellis Stones
• [8] Ellis Stones Appeal
• [9] Our leading landscape planner dies
• [10] Working with nature
• [11] University chair may honor architect
• [12] 50 Acres of natural parkland
• [13] We need to create a true Australian style
• [14] Magic of a garden
• [15] 1975 Victorian architecture award winner
• [16] article by Anne Latreille
• [17] 'Pocket' park plan urged
• [18] Making the most of your space
• [19] Planned for enjoyment
• [20] Ellis objects to restaurant in the Botanical Gardens
• [21] Landscaping scheme proposed
• [22] display home
• [23] como garden
• [24] Karwarra
• [25] Planners should go native
• [26] Olinda
• [27] Elliston
• [28] Toorak of the North
• [29] Children doing landscaping to plan of Ellis Stones
• [30] Richmond highrise
• [31] Winter Park, Doncaster
• [32] Gardens Gaffe challenged
• [33] Valley Freeway Action Group
• [34] Zoo
• [35] Winter Park
• [36] Eliston estate
• [37] newspaper ad from 1945 for his "Garden Art" company
• [38] Ivanhoe gardens
• [39] lots of history in this one

• [40] books on ebay
• [41] books indexed on google
• [42] google scholar

• [43] war record

Template:Persondata

Category:1895 births Category:1975 deaths Category:Australian landscape architects Category:Australian military personnel of World War I

This article, Ellis Stones, has recently been created via the Articles for creation process. Please check to see if the reviewer has accidentally left this template after accepting the draft and take appropriate action as necessary. Reviewer tools: Inform author