Leura

Sorensen's Glasshouse and Gardens

Today we drove up to Leura to visit a new venue, Sorensen's Glasshouse and Gardens at 8 Herbert Street, Leura.  This is on the site of renowned Danish-born landscape gardener, Paul Sorensen's original house and garden.  The Glasshouse is set on two acres of heritage listed gardens which still need a lot of replanting and work to bring them back to their original glory.  The work is being undertaken by Alexandra Munro and her partner, John Klugt describing the Glasshouse as their “dream business”.  They have leased it from the owner 

The couple has transformed the former nursery into a beautiful cafe/shop.  They have also employed a gardner to restore the gardens where the master plantsman, Paul Sorensen, once ran his nursery.  The site has been subdivided and twenty townhouses developed next door.

Paul Sorensen established the nursery in 1920.  He raised his family in the house on site and planted hundreds of cool climate trees in the arboretum, which he designed to give customers an idea of what mature specimens would look like.  The nursery finally closed in 1989, six years after Sorensen's death.

  

When Alexandra and John took out the lease, the Glasshouse was a complete mess and they spent five months stripping it out and refitting it into what is now a bright airy space selling locally made wares, greeting cards, skin care products, plants, etc.

The food, in the cafe, is fairly simple, as there is no kitchen on site.  There are teas, coffee, cakes and light snacks as well as soup and hot pies.  There are also ready-made picnic baskets for sale for eating in the garden, when the weather is suitable.
After lunch, we took a drive to some of our favourite lookouts in the Mountains.

Above is a view of the escarpment, taken from the track to the Sublime Point lookout in Leura.