His notable designs for private gardens include Como House in South Yarra, Rupertswood in Sunbury, Rippon Lea Estate in Elsternwick, Stonington mansion in Malvern, and Ard Choille at Mount Macedon, Victoria.
He worked in the gardens at Hamilton Palace near Glasgow, which is said to have profoundly influenced his design style.
[3] In December 1855, John Brown appointed Sangster head gardener and overseer at Como House.
Between 1874 and 1876, Sangster worked at Rupertswood, Sunbury, where he designed a pleasure garden for Sir William Clarke on a 60-acre site.
[5] In February 1879, Sangster was engaged as a contractor to redesign and redevelop the Carlton Gardens in preparation for the 1880 Melbourne International Exhibition.
[7] Between 1881 and 1884, Sangster was engaged as a consultant by Frederick Thomas Sargood for significant redesign work at Rippon Lea Estate, Elsternwick.
The design included a large terrace at the rear, extensive lawns, parterres, and shrubberies with an orchard and vegetable garden beyond.
Sangster used the steep terrain to create terraces, mini “lochs”, and a series of three cascades using a water reticulation system.
); National Estate Grants Program (Australia) (1993), A study of selected nineteenth century nurserymen and the sites they operated from / Estelle Haynes, Royal Botanic Gardens