Australia's Open Garden Scheme was a

non-profit organisation A nonprofit organization (NPO) or non-profit organisation, also known as a non-business entity, not-for-profit organization, or nonprofit institution, is a legal entity organized and operated for a collective, public or social benefit, in co ...

that began in

Victoria Victoria most commonly refers to: * Victoria (Australia), a state of the Commonwealth of Australia * Victoria, British Columbia, provincial capital of British Columbia, Canada * Victoria (mythology), Roman goddess of Victory * Victoria, Seychelle ...

Australia Australia, officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a Sovereign state, sovereign country comprising the mainland of the Australia (continent), Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous List of islands of Australia, sma ...

in 1987 but closed its doors in June 2015 due to financial issues. Its aim was to promote the knowledge and pleasure of

garden A garden is a planned space, usually outdoors, set aside for the cultivation, display, and enjoyment of plants and other forms of nature. The single feature identifying even the wildest wild garden is ''control''. The garden can incorporate both ...

s and

gardening Gardening is the practice of growing and cultivating plants as part of horticulture. In gardens, ornamental plants are often grown for their flowers, foliage, or overall appearance; useful plants, such as root vegetables, leaf vegetables, fruits ...

across Australia. Under the scheme, private gardens opened for public viewing for one or two weekends a year. About 650 gardens were opened annually across Australia but declining numbers and competition from groups promoting their own events outside of their booklet meant that it was not viable. Each year over 275,000 adults visited open gardens, together with accompanying children. A schedule for openings across Australia was published annually.

Tamie Fraser Tamara Margaret "Tamie" Fraser (née Beggs; born 28 February 1936) is the widow of Malcolm Fraser, who held office as Prime Minister of Australia between 1975 and 1983. Early life Tamara Margaret Beggs was born in Adelaide, South Australia, the ...

was President of the Open Garden Scheme. Neil Robertson was the CEO and

Australian Broadcasting Corporation The Australian Broadcasting Corporation (ABC) is the national broadcaster of Australia. It is principally funded by direct grants from the Australian Government and is administered by a government-appointed board. The ABC is a publicly-own ...

senior executive Thomas Murrell was a director and West Australian

chairman The chairperson, also chairman, chairwoman or chair, is the presiding officer of an organized group such as a board, committee, or deliberative assembly. The person holding the office, who is typically elected or appointed by members of the grou ...

for 9 years from 1997 - 2006. His own

, Chartwell House in Subiaco,

Perth Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia. It is the fourth most populous city in Australia and Oceania, with a population of 2.1 million (80% of the state) living in Greater Perth in 2020. Perth is ...

was open to the public on 18 October 1998. Murrell was also responsible for expanding the scheme into regional areas in

Western Australia Western Australia (commonly abbreviated as WA) is a state of Australia occupying the western percent of the land area of Australia excluding external territories. It is bounded by the Indian Ocean to the north and west, the Southern Ocean to th ...

and started gardening at the age of 5. Ruston%27s_Rose_garden_8

The scheme grew out of the practice in Victoria of "grand" private gardens in the hill country near

Melbourne Melbourne ( ; Boonwurrung/Woiwurrung: ''Narrm'' or ''Naarm'') is the capital and most populous city of the Australian state of Victoria, and the second-most populous city in both Australia and Oceania. Its name generally refers to a met ...

opening occasionally for public viewing for the benefit of

charities A charitable organization or charity is an organization whose primary objectives are philanthropy and social well-being (e.g. educational, religious or other activities serving the public interest or common good). The legal definition of a cha ...

. However the scheme did not limit itself to large gardens, with many normal-sized

suburb A suburb (more broadly suburban area) is an area within a metropolitan area, which may include commercial and mixed-use, that is primarily a residential area. A suburb can exist either as part of a larger city/urban area or as a separate ...

an gardens, and even tiny

inner-city The term ''inner city'' has been used, especially in the United States, as a euphemism for majority-minority lower-income residential districts that often refer to rundown neighborhoods, in a downtown or city centre area. Sociologists sometim ...

plots, included. Most openings in the southern,

temperate In geography, the temperate climates of Earth occur in the middle latitudes (23.5° to 66.5° N/S of Equator), which span between the tropics and the polar regions of Earth. These zones generally have wider temperature ranges throughout t ...

zone occurred between October and May, while

tropical The tropics are the regions of Earth surrounding the Equator. They are defined in latitude by the Tropic of Cancer in the Northern Hemisphere at N and the Tropic of Capricorn in the Southern Hemisphere at S. The tropics are also referred to ...

gardens open during the winter months. A nominal fee was charged for each viewing. This money was divided with 35% going to the garden owner or their nominated charity, and 65% going to the Open Garden Scheme. After funding the scheme operating costs, the remainder was given as grants to community garden projects, with over $800,000 in grants being made by the end of 2006. Additionally garden owners passed on over $3.5 million to their nominated charities since the commencement of the scheme. In 2015 new non-for-profit organisations have sprung up to carry on some of the tradition in individual states including Open Gardens SA and Open Gardens Victoria. Both schemes aim to educate and promote the enjoyment, knowledge and benefits of gardens and gardening and are promoting a long list of garden openings from spring through to autumn each year. They have attracted good membership numbers and visitor numbers. Unfortunately, no Open Gardens Group has formed in Sydney, but a
Open Gardens group exists in the Southern Highlands
of NSW, and th

are generally available for viewing all year round; Spring and Autumn are the most popular seasons. * An independent business
My Open Garden
also promotes open gardens and gardening events across Australia. * A detailed list of 650 or mor
Open Gardens in Australia
is still being constructed. Open Gardens claime
almost 20,000 gardens were opened
because of the Scheme's development. * Guide books and web guides to Open Gardens are also publishe
in the UK
and ''were published'' in Australia by the ABC. All such lists have now migrated to the web, and are published regularly b
Weekend Notes

References

External links

Blue Mountains and Mount Wilson open gardens
Gardening in Australia Non-profit organisations based in Victoria (Australia) {{garden-stub

See also

References

External links