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The George Tindale Memorial Gardens are a popular attraction located on hillside terrain in Sherbrooke Rd (about halfway between Kallista and Sherbrooke), 35 km east of Melbourne.
Covering 2.4 hectares, the Gardens have an impressive range of exotic flowering plants and shrubs under a canopy of mountain ash.
The property was purchased in 1915 by Herbert Harper for use as a holiday retreat. He built the existing house, established Harper's Drive, started an English garden and received some distinguished visitors, including prime minister Billy Hughes. Improvements were made to the property by a Mr Potter who purchased the property in 1939. However, the most substantial work on the existing garden was carried out by George Tindale, a research scientist with the Victorian Department of Agriculture, and his wife. They bought the property in 1958. Mrs Tindale bequeathed the garden to the Victorian Conservation Trust in 1980 and Parks Victoria took over the management in 1995.
In springtime, the garden boasts magnolias, azaleas, camellias, cornus and spring bulbs. Summer sees liliums, fuchsias, hydrangeas and perennials in bloom. There are cyclamen, nerines, lapageria and autumn foliage in autumn and camellias, luculia, rhododendrons and hellebores in winter.
The gardens are open from 10.00 a.m. to 5.00 p.m. daily, tel: 131 963. The entry fee is $4 for adults, $3 for concessions and $2 for children. Met bus 694 from Belgrave Station stops near the front gate. There are picnic and toilet facilities and many walking paths. You can picnic on the lawn and guided tours are available, tel: 131 963.
I visited these beautiful Gardens on September 26, 2007, on an overcast day.
All of my photos of the visit may be viewed at Photo Album
Download the Parks Victoria Visitor Guide
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