The Australian Garden at the Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne is growing apace with planting happening now in the Sand Garden while the placement of the Escarpment Wall Sculpture and the Rockpool Waterway has been completed.
Scheduled to open in May 2006, the Australian Garden is the only one of its kind in Australia, and aims to highlight the contribution of this country's flora and landscapes to the national sense of place and the nature of Australia.
Two of the main features of the Australian Garden - the Escarpment Wall Sculpture and the Rockpool Waterway – are now in place.
The Escarpment Wall Sculpture, designed by Greg Clark, is inspired by iconic red sandstone escarpments, such as those found at Uluru and King’s Canyon. It marks the separation between the Rockpool Waterway and the Sand Garden and screens out the vastness of the Sand Garden, symbolically holding back the desert from overflowing and enveloping the visitor. The artwork is nearly one hundred metres long and is made from richly coloured red rusted steel, made up of separate inter-locking components.
The Rockpool Waterway flows alongside the wall undercutting its eastern face, as though erosion has slowly eaten away at its underside over time.
Staff at the Royal Botanic Gardens are now planting out the Sand Garden, which is reminiscent of the flat landscapes of inland Australia where spectacular red sand contrasts with the colours and textures of the flora.
Plants include the Albany Daisy, Kangaroo-paw, Rope-rush, Snakebush, Mat-rush, Mat-rush, Paperbark, Honey-myrtle, and Needlewood. The seasonal flower displays will be extensive.
Media inquiries: Penny Underwood on (03) 9818 8540.
A selection of other common names of plants to be grown in the Sand Garden.
Ashburton Pea, Creeping Saltbush, Blood-red Net-bush, Broad-leaf Mulga, Caustic Vine, Butterfly Bush, Cockies Tongue, Grey Cottonheads, Spiny Saltbush, Murchison Claw-flower, Native Fuchsia, Old Man Saltbush, Western Boobialla