General News
9 December, 2024
Plants showcased to nature lovers
Australian plants that grow well in the Wimmera were under close scrutiny by participants attending an Australian Native Plant Society conference in Melbourne.
The conference, which had the theme Gardens for Life, included two tours of the Southern Grampians and Wimmera, pre-conference and post-conference.
Maree Goods of Horsham was one of five organisers of the conference at The Round Convention Centre in Nunawading and attended by about 300 delegates from across Australia.
Tour venues included Royce and Jeanne Raleigh's Wartook Gardens, Mabel Brouwer's large Horsham garden, Horsham Church of Christ Australian-plant gardens on River Road, Wimmera River wetlands and Mt Arapiles and the Little Desert.
Former East Wail farmers Maree and Graham Goods were coach captains for the first tour and Harvey Champness and Rae Decker hosted the second.
The tours also included Neil and Wendy Marriott's Stawell district garden, Alan and Maria Myers huge 25-acre garden at Dunkeld and the endemic garden at the new WAMA - Wildlife Art Museum of Australia - at Halls Gap.
Mrs Goods said the visitors were excited and surprised at the range of colourful Australian plants growing in the region.