▶Farm Vigano · 10 Bushman Way, South Morang VIC · Melbourne
▶An early summer garden wedding at Farm Vigano, the old Vigano family house above the Plenty Gorge in South Morang. The couple planned an evening ceremony on the lawn at half past five, portraits around the gardens and the gorge as the light softened, then a reception in the house with a first dance at eight and speeches later in the night. A page boy, flower girls and the family dog were all part of the plan.
Two homes, two crews · A white convertible · Vows on the lawn · Veil in the orchard · Speeches by the LOVE letters
The groom's morning ran at his family home with his groomsmen fixing each other's ties and a dad straightening a buttonhole before they posed with a white vintage convertible in the street. Across town the bride dressed with blush bridesmaid gowns hung along the wall, her mum settling the veil and three bridesmaids crouched around the hem of the lace. At Farm Vigano the guests waited on white chairs on the lawn below the brick house, with a timber arch dressed in dusty pink roses. Flower girls and a page boy led the way, the bride walked down the hill on her dad's arm, and the vows ran under a hot blue sky.
After the kiss the whole guest list waved from the grass, then the couple climbed the stone staircase and slipped into the orchard, where the veil flew across the fruit trees and the late sun flared behind them. The bridal party came in to applause and the first dance happened on the terrace under the striped awning with the gorge going dark behind the balustrade. Speeches came late, from the best man, the bridesmaids, parents and the couple themselves, with the LOVE letters glowing behind every speaker. The cake, a dance with her dad and a full floor followed, and the night ended with the couple in the back seat of the convertible.
Ceremony spot · Moving between spaces · Light · How the day ran · Portrait spots · Our advice
The ceremony at Farm Vigano was on the wide lawn below the house, with white chairs in rows facing a timber arch of dusty pink roses and the gum trees of the gorge behind. The bride came down the slope from the house on her dad's arm, which gave the processional a long, lovely approach, and the celebrant stood with the brick house and its stone staircase behind him. It is an open spot with no shade over the guests, so at half past five in early summer the sun was still strong. Plan an aisle that runs across the sun, not into it. Watch at 3:02 Watch at 3:32 Watch at 4:02
The lawn, the staircase, the orchard and the terrace all stack up the hillside, so the day moved up rather than across. After the vows the guests walked up to drinks on the terrace while the couple took the staircase to the orchard behind the house. The dining room is inside the house with the terrace right outside it, and that is where the bridal party entered, the first dance happened and the speeches ran under the awning. Nobody left the property until the convertible at the end, and nothing was more than a few minutes on foot. Watch at 4:28 Watch at 5:32 Watch at 6:08
Early summer at Farm Vigano gave a hard, bright afternoon. The ceremony lawn sat in full sun at half past five, so sunglasses were everywhere in the front rows and we placed the couple with the sun behind them to keep faces soft. The reward came an hour later, when the sun dropped behind the trees of the gorge and the orchard filled with warm backlight, which is where the veil shots were made. By the first dance the terrace was in blue dusk, and the LOVE letters and festoons took over for the speeches. Watch at 4:12 Watch at 5:12 Watch at 6:22
A half past five ceremony left just over an hour of light, and the couple spent it well: a whole guest photo on the lawn straight after the vows, the bridal party by the stairs, then the orchard for the two of them as the sun went. The reception opened on the terrace at half past six, the first dance came early at eight while guests were still fresh, and the speeches were held back to a quarter past nine so dinner ran without a break. A dance with her dad and the cake rounded out the formalities before the floor opened. Watch at 4:32 Watch at 6:18 Watch at 9:08
Everything was on the grounds of Farm Vigano. We used the bottom of the lawn for the all guest photo, the stone staircase for the bride's portrait, the hedges beside the house for the bridal party and the orchard behind the house for the couple, with the gum trees of the gorge beyond. It took about an hour in total, and the last twenty minutes in the orchard were the best, with the sun low through the branches. In early summer that window is around six to seven, so keep the groups quick and save the orchard for last. Watch at 4:32 Watch at 4:50 Watch at 5:12
What our team noticed was how a big wedding party, with page boys and flower girls out front, filled the lawn and made the processional feel like an event in itself. The white convertible linked the whole day, from the groomsmen posing in the street to the final frames in the back seat. Holding the speeches until after dinner worked because the first dance was already done and the room was relaxed. If you book Farm Vigano in summer, give the guests shade or fans for a late afternoon ceremony and spend your best light in the orchard. Watch at 2:52 Watch at 3:12 Watch at 10:26
Farm Vigano is the former country retreat of the family behind Mario's, the Exhibition Street restaurant that helped teach Melbourne to dine out from the 1930s. The family bought the land in the mid 1930s and built a brick and weatherboard house positioned to take in the Plenty Valley, with an orchard of pears, figs, quinces and stone fruit below it. The property is now publicly owned heritage, restored after years of neglect, and the house and its terrace are leased as a restaurant and wedding venue (Farm Vigano). A heritage wedding here comes with a real story to tell your guests.
Ceremonies take place on the lawns, with the gardens and the gorge as the backdrop, and the whole property is available for photographs on an exclusive hire. Drinks usually move to La Terrazza, an alfresco terrace in the best position on the property for cocktail hour and sunset. The main dining room is the transformed family home, light filled with floor to ceiling windows onto the valley, and there is a smaller Garden Room with its own bar and garden for more intimate receptions. An indoor dance floor suits a dinner for around a hundred and twenty; the terrace opens things up for larger parties.
The house faces the gorge, so the terrace and the lawns catch the late light while the gardens behind the house fall into shade first. For a summer ceremony after five the sun is low and warm across the lawn, and the hour that follows is the best of the day for portraits: the orchard rows, the long garden paths, the terrace balustrade and the gorge view all work in that light. The staircase inside the house is a favourite for a bride's portrait, and the big windows of the dining room give soft, even light for family groups if the weather closes in. Dogs are welcome at ceremonies, which the gardens make easy.
Early summer is a kind time for a garden wedding at Farm Vigano. Days are long, so a half past five ceremony still leaves a full hour of light for photographs and the terrace stays warm well into the evening, yet the heat of the day has passed before guests sit down. In autumn the orchard and the gorge turn gold and the light drops earlier, so bring the ceremony forward an hour. Winter weddings lean on the house, where the dining room's big windows frame the valley whatever the weather. Whatever the season, agree a wet weather plan early: the house and terrace can hold a ceremony if the lawn is out.
South Morang is about 25 kilometres north east of Melbourne's centre, roughly forty minutes by road, and the property sits inside the Plenty Gorge Parklands on a quiet lane off the suburban streets. There is parking on site for guests, and Middle Gorge station on the Mernda line is about a twenty minute walk away for anyone coming by train. Parts of the grounds are steep, so warn guests in heels and allow a little extra time to move between the lawn, the terrace and the house. Most couples book a car for the bridal party and let guests make their own way, with a late finish in mind.