About

The idea for Hip Hite Gardens was born in Bermuda in 2010. John and Vivienne were residing in Smiths Parish, Bermuda and Vivienne expressed a desire to carry out some square foot gardening on the ground. Bermuda only has a very shallow soil base of about 75mm to 100mm due to it being an ancient volcano base of limestone.  John constructed a square foot garden on the ground for her but after a week,  she  complained of a sore back and stated that she wished the garden was at her hip level. John being an attentive husband said "leave it with me" and went back to the drawing board. After retreiving a quantity of pine shelving from a toy warehouse which was closing down, he constructed the first Hip Hites for her. They were an instant success and another 12 were constructed, giving a sizeable garden area.  They eventually left Bermuda in 2012 and returned to Australia where they settled in Newcastle NSW. An idea was formed by them to recreate the gardens  and sell them at the Broadmeadow Farmers Market, which they did for the next 6 years.  They also attended a number of markets in the Sydney area where they were a popular item.  In 2021 they moved to Merriwa NSW  where they continue to create the gardens. They have also developed a new line of gardens using recycled pine pallets, thus creating an economical line of gardens.​