5 of the Best Gardens from Melbourne Flower Show Tours
When you visit the Melbourne Flower Show with Botanica, you'll also visit some of the state’s best gardens.
Melbourne is blessed to have many fantastic gardens right on our doorstep. In addition to visiting the Melbourne Flower Show you will see a great range of gardens. Here are some of the highlights.
Alowyn Gardens
The owner of the garden has been the recipient of ABC’s Gardener of the Year. There are five areas to explore, including the edible gardens, a silver birch forest and a parterre garden. An exciting plant nursery features everything from perennials to herbs, roses and various native species available for purchase. A 100-metre wisteria and rose covered archway runs through all the garden areas, leading to a sunken garden and classical fountain centrepiece.
The Diggers Club Gardens
Visit the three gardens owned by The Diggers Club founder, Clive Blazey beginning at Heronswood located on the Mornington Peninsula and headquarters of the foundation. This garden specialises in heirloom seeds, cottage flowers and an impressive range of edible plants. The Garden of St Erth champions Victoria’s cool-climate gardens with its elevated position in the Macedon ranges near Daylesford. Here you’ll find rare and unusual plant species. And in the heart of the Dandenong Ranges, Cloudehill Garden features herbaceous borders, roses and azalea walks.
Lubra Bend
Privately owned, this Phillip Johnson-designed garden showcases a beautiful wetland garden set in the picturesque Yarra Valley. The garden consists of mostly native plants, as well as three sculptures crafted by renowned Australian artists. Meander through the Camellia Grove, wander through the Orchard, visit the Vegetable Garden and admire the Dry Garden, another Phillip Johnson design.
Cranbourne Botanic Gardens
The Australian Garden section is located at the centre of the Botanic Gardens, and is a bold, unique design which uses local soil to represent the outback. There are over 170,000 species of native plants found in this section alone, which has been declared a protected site of state significance. There are a variety of lookouts scattered throughout the garden, where keen photographers can capture breathtaking garden vistas. Several walking tracks wind through the heathlands, wetlands and woodlands of Cranbourne Botanic Gardens. Signs on each track point you in the right direction and provide details about each walk. Visit the Cranbourne Gardens on our 6 Day Melbourne Flower Show tour.
Planetrees Estate
The north-east region of Victoria is renowned for its autumn foliage due to its cool climate. These private gardens are all unique and feature many fruit trees typically grown in the area. Set in the foothills of the Victorian Alps, these historic townships of Bright and Beechworth have hot summers and cold winters, which requires clever gardening. Well worth the visit is Planetrees Estate, a two-hectare European-style garden located in the heart of Stanley. Walk among the olive and citrus trees, and spot the rare and exotic plants secured in the perennial borders. Here, colour, texture and scent are celebrated through the gardens. Discover the north-east with Botanica on the 8 Day Melbourne Flower Show and Gardens of the North-East tour.