Australian Garden Show NSW Flower Shows and Open Gardens
Total Page：16
File Type：pdf, Size：1020Kb
Australian Garden Show Sydney Centennial Park, 5-8 September 2013 NSW flower shows, open gardens and events not to be missed Stretching from the heart of Sydney to the farthest reaches of regional NSW, there's an inspiring parade of lush green and colourful blossoms, with open gardens, floral and garden events bursting into bloom state-wide throughout spring. Inspired by the Australian Garden Show Sydney, explore Sydney's green spaces and floral delights, then meander further afield through the many beautiful gardens of regional NSW. Discover garden shows, where you can see inspiring displays and meet experts to grow your knowledge of all things green. Sydney's open gardens From the expansive green of Centennial Parklands to the harbourside splendour of the Royal Botanic Gardens; the manicured flowerbeds of Hyde Park to enchanting secret gardens dotted across the city, Sydney is a wonderland of buds, blossoms and beauty. Discover these treasures, open to all: The Bible Garden, Palm Beach: This serene garden in one of Sydney's most glamorous northern beachside suburbs is a series of gently descending, intimate grassed terraces leading down to a viewing area with spectacular panoramas across Palm Beach and Pittwater. There's a pond and a plaque explaining the garden's Christian origins and six decades of history. It's loved by locals for picnics, quiet contemplation and picture-perfect weddings. Centennial Parklands: This 360-hectare expanse of undulating parkland and woods in Sydney's inner east is the city's greatest green space. It encompasses Centennial Park, Queens Park and Moore Park, and contains heritage buildings, extensive native flora and fauna, a restaurant, cafe, kiosk, and visitor centre. In these three interlinked parks you can enjoy multiple outdoor activities including horse riding at the Equestrian Centre, cycling, rollerblading, football, cricket – or just long, rambling strolls in spots where you can't see a single piece of city skyline and you feel as if you're in open sydney.com visitnsw.com nswevents.com country. The Park also contains two main areas of the Eastern Suburbs Banksia Scrub endangered ecological community. Hyde Park: Hyde Park is the city's central open green space and began life in the 19th century as a racecourse and sports ground. Today, it's a perfectly manicured urban oasis with a grand tiled, tree-lined central pathway, the Archibald Fountain and the 1934 art deco War Memorial and Pool of Remembrance. On any day of the week you'll find a chess game in progress on the park's giant-sized board and the lawns make an excellent spot to take a breather from the bustling metropolis just metres away. Royal Botanic Gardens: This oasis of 30 hectares in the heart of the city occupies one of Sydney's most spectacular positions: winding along the harbour's edge around Farm Cove, with direct, up-close views of the Opera House. Established in 1816, it is the oldest scientific institution in the country and is home to an outstanding collection of plants from Australia and overseas. From the rare and threatened, to a romantic rose garden, the themed areas show nature's diversity. Special features include: Cadi Jam Ora - First Encounters, a display acknowledging the Cadigal - the original inhabitants of Sydney's city centre. Chinese Garden of Friendship: Darling Harbour houses one of the only Chinese gardens outside Asia. Initiated by the local Chinese community to share their rich cultural heritage and celebrate Australia's 1988 Bicentenary, the Chinese Garden is a lovely walled paradise which transports you into another place and time. The Garden was designed and built by Chinese landscape architects and gardeners, and is governed by the Taoist principles of 'Yin-Yang' and the five opposite elements - earth, fire, water, metal and wood. Explore a stunning landscape featuring waterfalls, lakes, exotic plants and hidden stone pathways, then unwind in the garden Teahouse with a drink and some Chinese delicacies. Lex and Ruby Graham Gardens, Cremorne Point: This beautiful garden is also a living love story. The stunning patchwork of winding paths, plant beds and secret corners on the steep slopes of the Cremorne Point Foreshore was first planted with a single Elephant's Ear bulb found floating in the rockpool down below in 1959, by local Lex Graham. With his new bride Ruby, he cleared decades of rubbish from the area, which had been used as a tip. The Grahams continued to tend the garden and it flourished over 50 years into a National Trust-listed showpiece. Although the Grahams have both sydney.com visitnsw.com nswevents.com passed away, their peaceful oasis is maintained by the local council and is a permanent reminder of this kindly, outdoors-loving couple. Lillian Fraser Garden, Pennant Hills: This 3,426 sq metre woodland garden in north-west Sydney once surrounded the home of Dr Lilian Fraser, Australia's third qualified female biologist, born in 1908. During a career spanning 33 years, Dr Fraser travelled extensively in Australia and overseas, spending her holidays exploring bushland for new plant and disease specimens. Among the wide range of plants in her garden are some very special for their size or rarity, and displays include natives, davidia and dogwoods. Dr Fraser died in 1987 without family, so she bequeathed her garden to Hornsby Shire Council so it could be enjoyed as a public garden and park. Lisgar Gardens, Hornsby: If you love camellias, take a stroll through these delightful 2.6 hectares of sandstone terraced gardens in Hornsby, in Sydney's north. The garden was begun in 1917 by Dr Max Cotton and by 1950 was planted with rhododendrons, azaleas, gardenias and other exotics in harmony with native trees and ferns, highlighting the eighty varieties of camellias. Some of the original camellias remain among the current ninety- plus varieties, and are now over sixty years old. The gardens also boast mass plantings of annuals, a pavilion, fish ponds, a gazebo, three waterfalls, picnic tables and a rainforest walk. Swain Gardens, Killara: Almost a secret, this secluded bushland garden is regarded by many as the most beautiful 3.4 hectares on Sydney's north shore. It was created by Arthur (Mick) Newling Swain on land behind his home, and when he died in 1973 it passed to Ku-ring-gai Council, which now maintains it. Features include meandering paths, flowering fruit trees, a rhododendrum walk , a giant metasequoia tree and a bridge made from sandstone from the Tank Stream, excavated from underneath Swain's bookshop in Pitt St. Koshigaya-tei Japanese Garden, Campbelltown: This Japanese teahouse and garden adjacent to Campbelltown Arts Centre was a Bicentennial gift to Campbelltown from Japanese sister city Koshigaya. Behind the centre is the Sculpture Garden, which presents a series of changing exhibitions including the annual Sculpture by the Sea. sydney.com visitnsw.com nswevents.com Paddington Reservoir Gardens: Alongside Paddington's boutique retail strip, Oxford Street, you'll find an award-winning venue that's been completely transformed from its former life as a 19th century reservoir supplying water for Sydney's population and then a garage and petrol station. It is now State heritage-listed and reborn as a stunning Romanesque sunken garden with a lake of contemplation at its centre and a hanging garden canopy around the perimeter. Hailed as a blend of the ancient Baths of Caracalla in Rome and the Hanging Gardens of Babylon, Paddington Reservoir Gardens even incorporates the site's original graffiti art in this unique transformation which won the Australian Award for Urban Design in 2009. Gardens of regional NSW If you relish a diversity of native plants and animals, or beautiful seasonal gardens in stunning natural locations, you’ll find plenty of botanic gardens, nature reserves and eco-friendly gardens to tempt you all over NSW. Blue Mountains Botanic Gardens, Mt Tomah: This stunning cool-climate garden is Australia's highest botanic garden. The 252 hectare garden is on a basalt-capped peak 1,000 metres above sea level, with sweeping mountain vistas and more than 40,000 native, exotic and rare cool climate plants. You'll see an extraordinary variety of landscapes here, from immaculate European- style gardens to pristine pockets of ancient rainforest. The Australian Botanic Garden, Mt Annan: Just 45 minutes drive from Sydney's CBD you'll find Australia's largest botanic garden. The Australian Botanic Garden displays over 4000 extraordinary native plants across 416 hectares of hills and lakes. The Garden features outdoor sculptures, free gas barbecues, a restaurant and a gift shop which sells plants. Corbett Gardens, Bowral: The Southern Highlands are famous for gardens, where the area's distinct seasons make for vivid autumn colours and bright, beautiful spring blooms. Corbett Park, at the centre of Bowral, is one of the finest and oldest. It dates back to 1911 and now boasts a huge array of tulips and colourful springtime bulbs, shrubs and trees. Corbett Gardens is the centrepiece of the annual Tulip Time Festival with over 100,000 massed tulips on display and 20,000 annuals. sydney.com visitnsw.com nswevents.com Eurobodalla Regional Botanic Gardens: Situated on a 42 hectare forest site five kilometres south of Batemans Bay on the NSW South Coast, this park is the only botanic garden in the world to grow exclusively species native to its region. There's no shortage of variety though; the area is home to 2,000 species of plants, trees and shrubs – and most can be seen in this park. There are also kangaroos, wallabies, bandicoots, possums, echidnas, snakes, lizards, frogs and many birds. The different sections, linked by walking tracks, give you a wonderful idea of the horticultural diversity of this part of the south coast.