Amazing horse garden spotted from above

It’s been largely unrecognised at ground level for nearly 20 years, but in recent times Google Earth has made the amazing Horse Garden at Youngtown visible to a global audience.

Created by former breeder of Arabian horses, Wendy Carins, now of Carrick, the massive planting of white roses within a stone and concrete border forming a prancing Arabian horse, is sometimes spotted by people flying out of Launceston Airport.

It was created by Wendy when she decided if she was going to plant a new garden on what was a barren, rocky ridge, she was going to do something spectacular.

“I left my Arabian stud Carington Park at Cressy and purchased the property at 500 Hobart Rd, Youngtown, in 1995, ready for a new beginning with my stallions Banriffic and Franklin Zaria.

I called the property Phoenix Ridge, which explains a new beginning, and the start of breeding horses under the prefix of Phoenix Ridge,” Wendy said.

“I’m a creative person at heart and have always found a way to leave an enduring impression for the people or businesses I’ve been involved with - but this was on a grander scale.”

The daughter of Launceston Commercial Hotel publican Joan Van Asch, Wendy worked alongside her mum at the pub for many years, always pursuing a passion for marketing and promotion on the side. 

She was probably best known as the producer of the Tasmanian Stud Directory and starting and running the Tasmanian Arabian Riders and Breeders Annual Stallion Parade held at Elphin Showgrounds.

The spectacular showcase of the best non-racing breeding horses in the State, complete with riding demonstrations, extravagant costumes and equestrian-related exhibitors, attracted up to 4000 spectators at its height.

However a lack of a suitable venue after the sale of the Elphin Showgrounds and the rise of online promotion eventually quashed the popular event after 25 years. 

Wendy said her love of horses, in particular Arabians, was the inspiration for the aerial garden.

“A stone house was built on the property and there were huge boulders left around the site and rock that had been unsuitable for the house.

“I borrowed an escavator, learned how to operate it, and positioned the biggest rocks in a large circle as a border for a new garden,” Wendy said.

“Over the next few years I negotiated huge amounts of fill from companies like Boral and Vernachi, and endless amounts of manure from the feedlots at Powranna, to create the garden bed.

“I used my Fergie Falcon car to drag harrows over the circle and smooth it out, sowed it with grass and then set about mapping out my Arabian horse.”

Looking like some kind of ancient equine Da Vinci Code, Wendy still has the original plan – a creased and faded piece of paper that showed the horse design by commercial artist Marian Duncan of NSW.

It was segmented into 96 pieces so Wendy could upscale this design onto the ground and maintain the correct proportions, without ever seeing the big picture.

To this day she has never actually seen her horse from the sky with her own eyes.

“I tucked that piece of paper inside my bra every day, so it’s well worn,” Wendy laughed.

“I’d pull it out regularly to make sure I was actually everything was going where it should.”

The garden was sectioned with nylon cord and wooden pegs and the massive task of outlining the design with rock and cement took nearly five years.

From 100 original white rose cuttings, Wendy propagated and planted hundreds more, determined to colour in her horse with living beauty rather than take the easy path of using white gravel.

On March 6, 2011, the garden was opened to the public as part of a community event, with donations at the gate and Devonshire teas raising funds for the Holman Clinic Auxiliary, which had looked after her mum in her final days.

It was a fundraiser she repeated for the next four years, with horse yards added and the animal attractions and family entertainment growing each time.

It was another year or two before she convinced local photographer Rob Burnett to take the aerial photo pictured here.

“I noticed little details that I wasn’t quite happy with, and that sparked another series of modifications to get it looking just right,” Wendy said.

Despite selling the property two years ago, Wendy still goes back regularly to maintain the garden.

She admits that often it’s just a case of letting the sheep in to give it all a good prune over winter.

“I’m pretty proud of it,” Wendy admitted.

“In a way I wish more people could see it when it’s in full flower – it really is spectacular.

“It’s going to be there for a very long time and it’s very satisfying to know that I’ve made a horse you can see from the sky.”