IF you were to look down from a plane flying over the Lower Hunter Valley town of Paterson, you’d see a 3.6ha patch of vivid green.
On a clear day you might even glimpse water sparkling in its centre.
You’ll probably wonder how this lush oasis, so strikingly surrounded by dun-coloured cattle country, came to be there. It’s as if an emerald had fallen from the sky and lodged on the floor of a valley.
What you’d be admiring is Valentia Lodge, Mal and Judy Henry’s little piece of paradise on Gresford Road, 1.6km outside Paterson.
The property has been the Henrys’ labour of love for over 35 years.
Tree by tree, palm by palm, fern by fern, shrub by shrub, they created a rainforest, wetlands, a dry forest, and a lake – making a secluded sanctuary for native birds and animals – and themselves.
After studying horticulture, Mal Henry shared his dream with his wife Judy of carving out a vibrant, living legacy for their family.
At first, the land seemed an unlikely choice, Henry admits.
“It had been a cattle property for 150 years,” he said.
“There was an old Victorian house on the hill and a few scattered gum trees.
“It was basically bare pastures, but it had the character I was looking for.”
Before they did anything, the couple studied the land for a year, watching each season play over its undulating hills.
Mal Henry loves rainforests. It’s been a lifelong passion born of watching Tarzan movies of the 60s, with Johnny Weissmuller swinging through jungle vegetation saturated in every shade of green Technicolour could capture.
“Establishing the rainforest was our priority,” Henry said.
“In the years that followed we’ve created the lake, wetlands and a dry forest as a habitat for native animals and birds.”
The property has been given over entirely to native species – no cattle, no domestic pets. When the last of the Henrys’ kids left home, they took the family dog with them.
Pets have been replaced by an array of native mammals and bird species, which Henry records.
“The birdlife here is incredible,” Henry said.
“Some are permanent, some return each year to breed.”
The Henrys also share their property with garden clubs and Landcare groups, who make a pilgrimage of sorts to Valentia Lodge. Costa Georgiadis and a Garden Australia crew recorded a segment there last year.
Members of Gresford Landcare were the most recent to tour the property, learning how the couple continue to care for it through weed control and flood management.
“Their beautiful property seems to have a touch of magic,” was how a spokesperson described it.
Their couple’s home has a room with an expansive glass window, allowing them to look out on their rainforest and enjoy the fruits of their labour.
Their advice to anyone wanting to restore a piece of land is ‘don’t wait’.
“You hear stories of people retiring in their 50s and 60s who buy a property and plant trees,” Henry said.
“That’s admirable, but we didn’t want to wait that long.
“We were in our early 40s when we bought this property in 1991. Now we can appreciate the mature trees and know that the habitat we’ve created basically looks after itself.”
People ask Mal Henry when’s the best time to plant a tree. He tells them: “20 years ago”.
– Laurie Sullivan
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