Who We Are
Grounded Landscapes is a small, family-owned business based in Geraldine, founded by Ben and Philippa Necklen. Combining our passion for craftsmanship with a love for the outdoors, we create functional and inviting spaces that encourage connection with nature and those around us.
We have three amazing children who all love to be outside playing sports, climbing trees, or helping in the garden (in other words, eating all the strawberries before they make it inside). Whether it’s tramping in the hills or toasting marshmallows in the backyard, our family is most grounded when we’re outside together.
Our love of design and creative problem-solving is shaped by generations of makers, gardeners, and hands-on thinkers thanks to our parents and grandparents. That heritage inspires us to craft thoughtful, well-built spaces that reflect the people who live in them.
Our Philosophy
Just as being grounded reflects stability and strong principles, our work is grounded in integrity, honest communication, quality workmanship, and sustainability.
We believe there’s a deep connection between wellbeing and the outdoors. Whether it’s a quiet garden corner or a space made for gathering, we love to create environments that support healthy living, foster connection, and encourage people to slow down.
Cultivating Change
Our journey to become carbon-neutral
We are passionate about looking after our place. We also believe that business has an opportunity and responsibility to look after our local community, so we are on a journey to being carbon-neutral, and thanks to our carbon tracking via COGO, we are actively looking at ways to reduce and offset our emissions. As part of our offset process, we choose local projects and community groups to support with native plantings in their creative landscape projects.
A reputation that keeps us grounded...
"It has always been a pleasure to work alongside Ben to create beautiful landscapes for satisfied clients. He has a keen eye for detail, is approachable, creative and open to solving any issues that may pop up. I have always found him to be professional, great with communication but also personable and generally great to deal with. I would recommend him if you are looking for a smooth and enjoyable construction process."
Buschl Smith Landscape Architects
"5+ stars for Grounded Landscapes from us! We've had Ben (owner operator) do a range of jobs for us around Hanmer Springs School over the past few years and have always been extremely satisfied with his service, workmanship, and price point. He's fixed and rebuilt fences, deconstructed, repaired and modified our playground, created a long term tree maintenance plan, built outdoor seating spaces and many other helpful jobs around our kura. Trustworthy & competent."
Hanmer Springs School
"Ben has completed several projects for us, and we have been impressed by his quality of workmanship, design flair and can-do attitude. We unreservedly recommend Ben and Grounded Landscapes for a professional job done."
John + Ruth
"Ben did a fantastic job of bringing our project to life. We were kept well informed of progress and were impressed by the meticulous work that was completed. We highly recommend Grounded Landscapes."
Carl + Cath
"Super happy with the work Ben has done for us on a few projects now. Multiple fences, a deck, new lawn and shaping garden beds, a new woodshed, paving, and re-cladding an old shed on the property. The finishing has always been 10/10 and we've found Ben to have an amazing ability to problem solve and think practically but also outside the box. We'll use Grounded Landscapes in the future 100%"
Dan
"Ben had great communication, was professional, friendly and was easy to have working at home. He bought knowlegde, skills and great ideas which we incorporated into our design. He was able to problem solve on the go and work efficiently. He engaged so well (and safely) with our kids which made it much easier to manage having a worksite in the backyard. We would thoroughly recommend Grounded Landscapes for your next project!"
Miri + Andy
"We needed to preserve access to the fenced back yard, maintain winter sunlight, and satisfy four neighbours. Ben came up with a plan that met all of our requirements and advised on contact with the neighbours. His problem-solving skills were exceptional, and workmanship and communication excellent."
Ross & Rosheen
