Who was Edna Walling?
Edna Walling (1895-1973) designed and constructed many well-known private gardens in Australia from the 1920s to the 1950s. She was renowned for her use of stone and dense greenery which created an overall sense of harmony and unity. A prolific writer and talented photographer she wrote several books, contributed hundreds of articles to The Australian Home Beautiful and left several unpublished manuscripts.
Walling was born in Devonshire, England. She arrived in Australia in 1914, studied horticulture at Burnley College and started working as a gardener. In 1921 she purchased three acres of land at Mooroolbark on the outskirts of Melbourne where she built her first house, Sonning, using local and second-hand materials. This project was the first of many during her long career.
Building East Point
As Walling could not find a builder who was willing to take on the somewhat daunting task of building a holiday house on the steeply sloping land overlooking the sea near Lorne, she decided to build it herself.
The Happiest Days of my life is a lively account of the creation of this house, together with her records and discussion of the native plants growing on the property. This manuscript provides a unique insight into Walling's forceful character and dry, self-deprecating humour. It takes the form of a conversation between Walling and Twid, her ‘youthful offsider’. | 
