Client Testimonials
W.E Green
Some time ago a young Nick Florio worked hard to put in our garden. The palms around the pool have grown to their mature height. One afternoon my wife Joan showed me a brochure left by Warren for Classic Colorado Toppings and seeing the photo of Nick, I Said OK, Let’s go ahead and get the driveway and carport done.
It’s all finished and looks great. I’m sure David Chancellor the architect who designed our home back in 1962 would be impressed.
The speed and concentrated work done quickly and professionally showed that Nick Florio and his son Brent have all the answers to a driveway and surrounding problems.
One day I hope to have the rest of the half acre done, this will set the house off in its true surroundings.
Thanks Nick and your team.
Bill Green and Joan.
Park Orchards
To whom it may concern
March 2008
This reference relates to our recent engagement of Nicholas Florio of Australian Garden and driveway design to re-establish our 39 year old garden struggling in a pine plantation and following the downing of several pines in strong winds before Christmas 2007.
At the time, “hurricane Nicholas” was hitting the north west of Australia, and when our driveway was soon to be inundated daily with another load of mulch, soil, rocks, pebbles, sleepers, barrows, buckets and the “Dingo”, we nicknamed our garden Nicholas as our own “Hurricane Nicholas”
Nick had described his vision for re-establishment, based on the garden designs of Edna Walling & Ellis Stones (both of whose work we were familiar with) and despite the absence of any formal plan, we accepted nick’s undertaking to work to materialising his verbalised vision to our mutual satisfaction within a capped quote, covering a defined disturbed area.
Although the vision evolved during the construction, it did so in close consultation and although not yet finished (rained off today) we expect completion next week after 9 work days.
The crew Nick uses are hard working and responsive to implement his vision.
We are greatly pleased with the results so far, whether looking at the choice of rocks, pebbles, sleepers, plants etc. or their placement; the results speak for themselves.
Regards
David L Mayor.
The Dench Group
20th February 2006
Mr Nick Florio,
I write to thank you and to congratulate you on the absolutely amazing transformation of my front garden, from a barren, uninteresting space to the wonderland I asked you to make it.
In 1970, Ellis Stones designed the garden for our then new home, and made it a place of natural beauty, with rocks, sleepers, Lilydale toppings and sensitive planting.
Whilst the internal courtyard gardens have survived virtually intact, I have for some years tried to find someone sympathetic to, and knowledgeable of the way Ellis Stones saw landscape so that my front garden might be restored to something like its original beauty.
How glad I am that I found you, Nick! How interesting that, whilst my initial contact was only to enquire about your stabilising process for Lilydale toppings for my problem driveway, it led to the discovery that you not only design and build gardens, but also have studied and used Ellis Stones' methods and philosophy for years.
So I now have, not only a driveway of stable Lilydale toppings, but also a brilliantly restored front garden which actually surpasses the design, beauty and interest of the original. The transformation is stunning and it has become a place of peace and respite for me. I believe Ellis Stones would have been delighted and impressed - as I am, constantly!
Thank you again, Nick.
Yours Sincerely,
Bruce Dence
Managing Director
Montrose
Lincoln and myself would like to thank you and your company for all the hard and creative work you have done to our home. It has added great value to our property.
Tom - Thank you for giving us your time with the planning and cost of our garden. You spend many hours going through what we wanted and what your company could offer. Your time was greatly appreciated.
Nick - Your ideas and creative mind certainly shows in your work. The placement of rocks and choice of native plants are excellent. It was hard to imagine our backyard being so beautiful and functional. It was so pleasure having you and your team over that finishing the whole property was a must. Not only is our backyard wonderful but we now have a lovely front yard. Looking out to the street is now a gorgeous sight. The very ordinary fernery we once had, now is a dry creek riverbed with the sound of running water. Just gorgeous!
Luke - Thank you for your hard work. You will certainly make a great landscape gardener yourself. You are a great asset to this company and should be very proud of yourself.
Thank you once again for all your time and hard work.
We would certainly recommend your company to our friends.
Regards,
Lincoln & Kelly
Montrose
Mooroolbark
May 11 2005
Dear Nick & Tom,
Just a short letter to let you know what a pleasure it was to have availed of your services.
From beginning, talking to Tom, through to the end we have enjoyed a level of service and professionalism not often experienced in many industries today, tinged with your extra personal touches Nick. Commendations to Peter and his offsider who were a delight to have working here as part of the overall team, ensuring a quality product was delivered to ourselves (who have not tested this kind of driveway construction before) in a most courteous and charming manner.
It has been a rewarding experience watching our driveway transform into a thing of beauty, and I will be certainly be speaking most highly of your services and what I believe to be great value for money! Well done!
Thankyou again for your outstanding services. Hope to use your services again in the future.
Yours faithfully,
Caroline & Andy
Langwarrin
To Australian Garden & Home Express Pty Ltd:
Thank you Nick, and team for our new driveway, not only does it look good, but driving on it is a pleasure. Coming home is a real treat, and the natural stone look enhances our rejuvenated garden, that now needs more work done, to complement the result of your team's hard work.
Thanks,
Marcia and Peter
Langwarrin
Olinda-Monbulk
Our property on the Olinda-Monbulk Road needed the paths and driveway rebuilt due to extensive damage done by heavy rains.
Prior to contracting you we had contacted several landscapers seeking quotes for various driveways and garden construction elements. Whilst some had been willing to undertake the resurfacing of the driveways, none had been willing to construct the garden works.
You said you were willing to both resurface the driveways and paths and build the unique barrel and stairway we wanted. The stabilized form of the Lilydale Toppings you used was successful in stabilizing the drive and paths and your construction of the barrel retaining wall and steps was excellent. The job looks fantastic, and was completed as you promised, the design involved unique construction elements and was a difficult job but at no stage did we have difficulty obtaining your co-operation with changes. The end result was unique and beautiful.
Since then we have sold the property and moved to Mt. Eliza. The new house had a diabolical pebble driveway surface. We were pleased with you rework of it with your special stabilized Lilydale Toppings.
Warmest regards,
Phill & Madeleine
Montrose
11 December 2002
To Whom it may concern:
Re: Nick Florio / Australian Garden & Driveway Design
We, Lou and Anna Musilli are delighted customers who can highly recommend Nick's great and unique designs in any amazing transformation in regards to any garden or driveway. As Nick and his team show outstanding enthusiasm and commitment in their approach to their workmanship, results have proved Nick's experience and confidence has allowed a high standard of work to be produced.
Australian Garden and Driveway Design enable satisfaction for both their customers involved and their team. Their extensive designing and preparation prior to the project is performed to the smallest and accurate detail to ensure quality work is achieved at all times.
Australian Landscaping and Driveway Design have constructed a new and exciting garden for us. They have incorporated some spectacular features, which now give more character to our home. Their end results are unique. We have no hesitation in recommending Nick and his team to make your garden as perfect as ours.
Lou & Anna Musilli
Montrose
Burke Rd
22nd March 1999
TO WHOM IT MAY CONCERN:
Re:
Australian
Garden
& Driveway Design
We are Managing Agents of the Body Corporate situated at Rolaine Close, Lilydale.
Under instruction from the Committee of the Body Corporate we recently engaged the services of
Australian
Garden
& Driveway design to undertake landscaping and car park preparation in the common area.
Many of our owners have expressed complete satisfaction with the work, being happy with the speed of service and the quality of work undertaken.
Yours faithfully
BODY CORPORATE ADMINISTRATION PTY LTD
W R JENKINS
Summen Hills Cres
Dear Nick,
What a team you and your clever son Brent make, add to the willing help of Daniel and it was all systems go.
What had been a pot holed, rutted clay bog caused by the trucks and materials of a recently finished extension became an attractive, neat and most importantly of all clean driveway, in no time.
It was a relief how accurately you picked up on our wish to keep the front of the house as natural as possible. The side garden you created out of available rocks, sleepers and plants showed true style, flair and understanding. Best of all though was your energy and enthusiasm. Just standing and talking to made all sorts of possibilities seem achievable and the more we talked the ideas came through thick and fast.
When we are ready to get started again the only people we will have back are you and your crew. I’ll look forward to seeing more of your lovely and original work and to have the best looking garden in the street.
Thankyou so very much from both Wayne and myself, we’ll be in contact again soon.
Regards Helen F.J
Karralla Court
To the management and team members of “
Australian
Garden
and Driveway Design”.
Joy and I express our sincere appreciation to all involved in the reconstruction of our driveway.
The advice given as and the speed in which the task was completed deserves commendation. The finished product is highly satisfactory and enhances the approach to our home. The use of agapanthas to soften the edge of the driveway is an action we would not have considered. It was pleasing to have Toni visit to view the surfacing during progress. Her comments were highly favourable and commendable.
Thanks to all involved for you promptness and efficiency. We would thoroughly recommend the team to anyone considering driveway construction and re-construction.
Yours Sincerely
Colin & Joy Krause
Toorak
Mr Nick Florio and his team recently provided us a beautiful new driveway for our country retreat.
After careful discussion of our needs and our perception of the new path having to blend in with the informal look “Old world look” of our garden and slightly winding pathway was created allowing the undulating edges to blend with the existing green.
A team of several men worked in close cooperation, cleaning and smoothing the path of protruding roots and old asphalt, covering it with a thick layer of Lilydale Topping – followed by heaving watering and finally finished the surface up with rollers, the work was completed in three days.
The new path now blends in beautifully with the garden as if it had always been there and is a definite asset to our property.
We are very pleased that Nick Florio was at our gate on that day we arrived for a weekend and offered to make the path. We can highly recommend the work of Australian Garden & Home Express Pty Ltd.
N & R Riffert
Toorak
D & R Howland
Dear Nick,
It is now over 6 months since your company reconstructed our driveway and I thought you might be interested to know that it is still looks as if the work was done only yesterday.
A couple of months after the driveway was laid, our granny flat was removed, and this of course involved heavy vehicles. Not only that, one of the vehicles managed to get bogged and a heavy duty towing vehicle was required. This had to be parked on the driveway to pull out the bogged vehicle and we were concerned as to how our lovely driveway would survive. We were more than pleased to see that no damage at all was done, not even the faintest indentation where the tow truck was parked. This of course was due to your very professional technical expertise when the original work was done.
Thanks again Nick for your expertise and the enthusiastic performance of your gang, and be assured that we will have no hesitation recommending you to any other person requiring this type of work.
Sincerely,
Dick & Rosa Howland
Lilydale
Dear Nick Florio,
I would just like to take this opportunity to thank you on behalf of our Body Corporate, for your prompt response to our phone call regarding our private housing estate.
I am pleased to confirm that we are happy to go ahead with
Australian
Garden
and Driveway Design.
We were very impressed with your friendly, helpful advice and your high standard of work. Your presentation was outstanding. The appearance on the day of quotation was impressive and very business like.
You were the only company that gave us references and photos of your actual work, on that alone you already had our business, plus the fact that your quote was of a higher quality of work than our other quotations.
We are looking forward to the completion of our estate and hope to be doing further business with you in the future.
I have no problems in referring you to my friends and family.
Kind regards
Maxine Dalbrun, Lilydale
R Searle
Many thanks to Nick, Brent and team for a wonderful job. The Lilydale Toppings complement the now and future plantings of native garden and the flat surface make it a lot easier walking, all done in an afternoon. Great result.
Yours sincerely
Raymond Searle
Bunnett Rd Knoxfield
To Whom it may concern:
Please pass on my gratitude to the team from
Australian
Garden
and Home Express Pty Ltd. For a thorough job well done. From the beginning of the job I found them professional, co-operative and hard working. I was extremely pleased with the extra emphasis in giving the job that special finish on the top of the steps and the end of the sleepers. I am glad I chose your company too, because the job was done promptly after consultation with no fuss. Again I wish to thankyou for the garden I can be proud of now.
Kind Regards
Park Road, Park Orchards
I am truly delighted with the wonderful work Nick did to improve the driveway. I love the natural look which blends in with the garden, it truly enhances the appearance.
I would like to thank Nick and the boys.
Frankston South
Beverly and I first came across Nick Florio's garden and landscape business when a representative of his company (Geoff) came to our home asking if we were interested in having our driveway renovated. This is a project that we intended to undertake for 23 years and the driveway had become a mess and was in dire need of a "make-over".
Nick discussed how it could be renovated using materials that were compatible with a natural environment and a native garden. Included in our requirements was the provision of attractive bluestone retaining walls and bluestone that would line the driveway.
It was obvious from the outset that Nick was passionate about his work and the quality of his product. Both of the tasks that Nick undertook were completed to our total satisfaction, and delight, and they have considerably enhanced the appearance of our home and our garden.
During the process, Nick's team worked cooperatively together to achieve the final result and they proved to be a conscientious and capable group. Consequently, the final result was outstanding.
Throughout the process, Nick kept me informed of the process and procedures that he was implementing.
Since that time, we have been able to add to the "new" appearance of the garden through the additional planting, both of natives and with a newly created rose garden.
Read Ave, Upper Beaconsfield
Dear Nick,
Thank you very much for the efficient manner with which you completed the work on our circular driveway. We were impressed with your efficiency and your friendly helpful manner and delighted that nothing was too much trouble or became a drama.
Being a circular driveway in full view of the street, we wanted a finish that would compliment both our federation style home and the natural bush setting of our land. We considered an asphalt driveway but decided against it based on the industrial appearance of the finished product. The natural appearance of the stabilized topping fitted our requirements perfectly and we would not hesitate to recommend the product to others.
Please convey our thanks to Tom Munro. He was a pleasure to deal with.
Two Bays Rd, Mt Eliza
Dear Nick,
David and I would like to take this opportunity to thank you for the fantastic transformation of our driveway, creation of our sleeper wall entrance and completion of our pathway.
We had very specific requirements for our feature sleeper wall entrance to match our pathway and house design. We knew this would be quite different to anything you had done before, yet you assured us this would not be a problem.
Your team consisting of (Peter, Ben and Jordan) was always on time and worked extremely hard on a labor intensive slope to build this wall. As the wall developed your team was always flexible to my small changes and additions. I am very happy to say the wall looks fantastic and exceeds our expectations.
The next job was to stabilize our relatively steep driveway.
Until Jeff dropped your advertising under our door we thought we only have two choices of either concrete our asphalt, neither of which was appealing. Your unique blend of Lilydale toppings and cement was just what we were looking for to compliment our surrounding native garden and home.
We left for Fiji on Tuesday and you started immediately Wednesday morning and completed the job that same night just before a very heavy and long rainfall. Next morning both you and my Dad were there to check for any signs of movement and there was nothing. No movement at all and no more slipping of car tyres or getting bogged. There is no longer a requirement for 4 wheel drive cars only at the base of our driveway. Everyone can now drive up and down perfectly in any car or bike. Amazing!!! Well done.
What a wonderful surprise we had 2 weeks later returning to our newly transformed driveway, it looks amazing. The colour is fantastic, the cream lifts the colour of our house and blends beautifully with the environment.
Thank you once again Nick and your wonderful team, David and I would not hesitate to recommend you and your business to anyone. You met our budget and exceeded our expectations.
Mt Dandenong Rd, Olinda
To Whom it may Concern:
The week my husband and I listed our house in Mount Dandenong "For Sale", we decided to improve the appearance of our driveway. As such, we took ourselves to the local topping supplier and arranged for 12 cubic metres of crushed rock to be delivered. Upon delivery, we tediously shovelled and raked it out. However mush to our despair, upon waking the next morning, we found our driveway looked simply terrible; the colour of the crushed rock had dried to varying shades of light grey, the surface was noticeably uneven, and it was simply a disaster. In despair and feeling totally devastated that our efforts resulted in a situation worse then what we started, we decided to make contact with a driveway specialist who could help rectify the situation. Searching the Yellow Pages, we came across Australian Garden & Driveway Design.
Even though it was Sunday, I called the mobile telephone listed on the internet site and was happy to make contact with the Victorian Manager, Tom Munro. Understanding our urgency and concern for what had happened, Tom said he would make contact with the Director of the Company, Nick Florio and would arrange for Nick to contact us. Within a few hours of my telephone call, Nick made contact with me and I discussed what had happened. He said that although he was at a family gathering, he would endeavour to meet us that evening, which to our gratitude, he did.
From inspecting our driveway, Nick suggested and agreed to lay down Lilydale stabilized Colorado Toppings. Understanding the urgency of the job, Nick arranged for our job to commence the following Friday. And within two days, our driveway was transformed from a nightmare, to a clean and beautiful driveway complimenting our garden and surrounds. And we are ever so grateful to Nick for coming through with his promise. We now have a complete package to offer, a beautiful home, garden and driveway.
Our gratitude to Nick Florio and his team at Australian Garden & Driveway Design for achieving such a pleasing result. Clearly from the before and after photographs of our driveway, one can only agree that a beautiful natural result was achieved.
