Hi, I’m Emilia Zados.

Hi, I’m Emilia. I am a nature lover at heart, a wellness guru and someone who sees gardens as essential spaces to relax, reflect and be with our families (and ourselves). Regardless of how much or little  space you have, there is a solution for everybody to access the health benefits of green space. My vision is to help people find this and transform their gardens into a functioning aspect of their wellness rituals.

I grew up with a mum who was in the garden every spare minute. Her gardens were a maze of different rooms, each with their own energy, form and function. From her, I learned that a life spent outdoors is a nourishing one. It is in our gardens that we can find true peace and connection. 

After spending most of my career in fashion and in rail as a Project Manager, I knew that running projects was where I thrived.  I have experience Project Managing rail projects across Victoria and my career highlight is coordinating  part of  the Flinders Street Station Heritage restoration project. However, despite the rewarding career path, I always felt a strong call to be in nature. My husband (owner of Concrete by Bayleaf) is a concreter, self proclaimed plant guru and also a qualified garden designer. He previously owned a garden maintenance business, where he had the privilege of servicing many high end residential gardens in Melbourne’s inner bayside and South-East suburbs.  With all of this expertise behind me, it felt only natural to combine our knowledge and skills and expand the Bayleaf business.

I am qualified in Project Management and Garden Design. I studied my postgrad in Project Management at RMIT. My Graduate Certificate in Garden design was obtained at Burnley Horticultural College (The University of Melbourne),  where I was offered the gift of learning from some of the most well renowned industry experts including Landscape Architect Andrew Laidlaw. 

Work with me, and let's see how your outdoor space can transform your life.

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FAQs

  • WeI dabble in all kinds of gardens, however, our real passion is creating gardens for wellness. We love the idea of turning our outdoor spaces into functional wellness zones. Think meditation corner, walking relaxation zones, sauna and cold plunge and the sound of trickling water. In designing your garden, we will encourage you to embrace the more natural elements for your outdoor space. We love rock, and in particular working with stone from local quarries. We love timber, rustic recycled materials such as railway sleepers, or old tree stumps reconstituted as seats, and natural water features like in-ground ponds to attract birds and local pollinators. We also love working with indigenous species, so where we can, we will create a plant palette with species native to the local area. 

  • If you are after a free-standing cold plunge or sauna, then you’re in the right place, however, due to the environmental impacts and scope, we do not manage projects for clients wishing to install large inground pools. We will work with you to choose the right plunge pool for your space, but ask that you book delivery and installation of the pool directly with the company, as we are not pool experts! 

  • We offer all kinds of paving including crazy paving and stone cladding and our preference is to source stone from local quarries. Gardens by Bayleaf is born from Concrete by Bayleaf, so If you are after an exposed aggregate driveway or require a new crossover, or slab to put in your shed or wellness space, please contact info@concretebbybayleaf.com or contact emilia@gardensbybayleaf.com for a full service package including concrete, planting, and all landscaping needs. 

  • We offer consulting, Project Management and Garden Design for a range of budgets. The design fee component of your project will range between $1500-$2800 + GST depending on the size and scope of your project. For more details please check out our services page. 

  • We will create a plant list based on a combination of factors. If any existing plants are remaining in your garden, these will remain as a template on our planting plan. We will compile a mood board to ensure we are on the same page (you may have one already as inspiration)!  A site analysis will help us to assess environmental factors such as shade, sunlight and heat refraction and we also test the soil for pH and complete a texture analysis. Maintenance requirements and garden uses, including whether you would like to grow any herbs or vegetables will also help us come up with the ideal plant list for you and your landscape.