A group of 16 from the Gardening Interest Group were looking forward to a day in the Macedon Ranges. Firstly, we headed off on the highway to Macedon and drove through the little town to have a morning tea at the Centennial Park, opposite Honour Ave on Mt Macedon Road, Macedon. The town put on a splendid day with the autumn colours were in full swing. We then headed to the Dicksonia Rare Plants Nursery, 686 Mt Macedon Road, Macedon, where we were met by the owner Stephen Ryan. Stephen had run the family nursery until he started his own nationally recognised nursery in 1980 and has been a passionate plant collector ever since. He spoke about the difference of his nursery where he cultivates nearly all his plants for sale rather than buying plants in bulk to sell onto his customers. While he said his plants were rare, they were still hardy and most were well suited to the Ballarat climate. He also spoke about his life outside the nursery and was a regular on a radio program Me