On Saturday 26 October and Sunday 27 October from 10am-4pm, Royal Botanic Gardens Victoria is celebrating the 20th anniversary of its much-loved Ian Potter Foundation Children’s Garden. 

Unlike other playgrounds, the Children’s Garden is designed to encourage nature-based play and attracts around 300,000 visitors per year.  

Less than half (45%) of children spend time outdoors most days according to a study by the Royal Children’s Hospital*. 

Chris Russell, Director and Chief Executive, says that the garden has become increasingly important as children continue to spend more time on screens and social media. 

Research also shows that nature exposure improves children’s cognitive functioning (including increased concentration, attention span and academic performance), better motor coordination, improved social skills, physical development, and can reduce the symptoms of ADHD*. 

The brainchild of the garden and longstanding gardens Landscape Architect, Andrew Laidlaw said that this garden was inspired by watching his own children play in nature. 

“When children spend time in nature, they connect to nature and each other. That is when the creativity and magic happen,” he said. 

Laidlaw said that the garden has maze-like qualities, a place for children to roam and explore, to splash in the water, play games and get their hands dirty. 

Features of the Garden include a bamboo forest, water fountains, kitchen garden, lookout tower, pond and streams running throughout, a shelter and lawns for parents to rest on a picnic rug. 

The Garden was funded in 2004 by the Ian Potter Foundation at the request of renowned philanthropist, Lady Potter AC. 

She believes that it is important for children to have a place to play. 

“Children are the future, and we need to look after them. When I was young, most people had a backyard where children could play cricket and games. Today, high rise buildings are going up and children are getting stuck to their screens. This garden gives children a place to go,” she said. 

To celebrate the anniversary, Lady Potter has provided an additional sum for upgrades to the garden including new signage, an upgrade to the shelter, new drinking fountain, storage facilities, and new ‘Seek and Find’ self-guided activities that the children can borrow and return. 

To celebrate the anniversary, there will be a fun line-up of activities and celebrations including a birthday cake, an interactive performance featuring human-sized bees by Polyglot Theatre, nature play supported by learning facilitators and volunteers, as well as a new episode of Sonica Botanica - a guided audio tour created by children.  

For further information about the Garden, click here. 

About Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne 

Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne has been a treasured part of Melbourne’s cultural life for more than 170 years – much loved by generations of Victorians, as well as by many visitors from interstate and overseas. It is a picturesque haven for recreation and an important resource for education, conservation, science and horticulture. 

Melbourne Gardens extends over 38 hectares and houses a collection of more than 8,500 species of plants from around the world, including amazing and diverse plant collections such as camellias, rainforest flora, cacti and succulents, roses, Californian species, herbs, perennials, cycads, plants from Southern China and, in the Rare and Threatened Species Collection, plants from south-eastern Australia. 

Entry is free. 

Open from 7:30am-5:30pm daily. 

About the Ian Potter Foundation Children’s Garden 

The Ian Potter Foundation Children’s Garden has set the bar for nature-based play. The entire garden is scaled for children, and specifically designed to intrigue young visitors to explore. What lies around the bend, through the gorge, amid the forest? The landscape is an invitation to climb, jump, crouch, crawl and revel in the natural world, a delight for children and carers alike. 

The collection is important as it: 

• Offers a space for children to learn about flora and fauna, through having exposure to different forms, textures and colours. This is achieved by maintaining scale and having a patchwork of spaces which link throughout the space. 
• Provides an active kitchen garden to demonstrate growing edibles and the growing cycle from planting to harvest. 
• Provides for families to gather which inspires intergenerational learning and knowledge sharing. 

Please note that this area is only open between Wednesday and Sunday each week (plus all Victorian school and public holidays). For 8 weeks during winter, this area is closed. 

For more information, click here.