U3A Ballarat Gardening Interest Group

Event Report by Coral Hiscock The U3A Gardening Interest Group were offered attendance at a plant propagation workshop. Two workshops were undertaken on the 16th March by Andrew Parker at his home in Canadian.   Attendees were shown around Andrew's garden, discussing and speaking of plants that were propagated, planted out and have spectacularly formed into a very colourful and quite unique garden. Andrew spoke on different ways to propagate, using cuttings from all types of plants including creeping or border plants, layering of small conifer type plants, succulents and many more.   The weather, watering, pests and other issues were discussed by the group and best practice care for young plants once propagation had taken place was interesting and welcoming for successful planting.   Andrew then demonstrated; with the attendees undertaking, how to make small newspaper pots, lining them in trays with soil, then potting up the cuttings. Some of the cutting...

Event Report by Kerren Melgaard Today was a surprise. My third visit to a garden designed for a dry climate, this time at the end of summer, held an expectation of a parched ground with withered flora, brown and grey being the colour palette. Not so. Fresh green growth on eucalypts, red on proteas and a dazzling display of colour from kangaroo paw, ericas and eremophilas to name a few. This volunteer-led garden is a two decade “work in progress” featuring Australian native plants and those from countries such as South Africa and America which tolerate low water conditions. John, our guide, showed us how this once industrial wasteland, with the vision, planning and hard work of many volunteers, can be converted into a place where both people and wildlife can enjoy.   Mounds of bare earth become mounds with paths, which become themed garden beds. Public funding and local council support along with external expertise, have also helped bring this open garden from “a good idea” to nat...

  Guided tour of the Botanical  Gardens Event Report by Marianne Our first event for 2021 was  well  attended by 34 participants. Andrew welcomed the group then handed over to Terry O’ Brien,  a member of the Friends of the Botanical Gardens Inc.  ( and who will take over the role of President  at the AGM  later this  month). Terry   also welcomed us and  gave a brief outline of the  contributions made by the FBBG  in  the support and maintenance of the gardens.     We divided into four groups each with our own leader, all of whom are members of FBBG. My group was lead by Sandi De Groot who graciously gave of her knowledge of the gardens and its beginnings. We started with a visit to the George Longl ey Building which is used for me etings of the FBBG and also houses the  li brary and information leaflets. George Longley was the first curator of the gardens  in 1858 a nd lived in a tent onsite...

  Our front garden in 2005 The front garden in its early incarnation Ingrid and I purchased the property in 1998 as the future site of a Bed & Breakfast Guesthouse that had been a long-term ambition for us. The property at that time was two-and-a-half acres with an old house on it. The property had been owned by the Hocking family for at least two generations. It was rural at that time as none of the housing subdivisions to the east of Canadian Creek were even thought of back then. The old house had been fenced off from the majority of the block which was completely overgrown and neglected. The site where our house and garden are now, was completely impenetrable, overgrown with gorse, blackberry and cape broom. There was also a derelict cattle loading ramp and the remains of what was once a tennis court. At the rear of the block was approximately one acre of derelict chicken sheds. Over the next few years we gradually cleaned up the land and removed all the shedding. In...