By Oscar Parry
An architect-designed botanic garden visitor centre in Melton is on the cards, with a revised draft master plan for the Melton Botanic Gardens adopted for consultation.
Tabled at the May 26 council meeting and now open for community consultation, the draft master plan outlines the ongoing development of the botanic garden and maintenance requirements.
With the first master plan for the site created in 2009, the new draft plan acts as a review now that the garden is about 80 per cent complete.
A highlight of the draft plan is a feasibility study to consider a botanic garden centre that would be used to promote education, host events and seminars, and provide a meeting venue for Melton community groups – especially environment groups including the Friends Group, Eynesbury Environment Group, Melton Garden Club, Australian Plant Society (APS) Melton and Bacchus Marsh.
The centre could also be leased or hired for special functions or seminars facilitated by council.
Friends of the Melton Botanic Garden president John Bentley said the garden has gone through “youth” and “infancy,” with the updated draft master plan now setting the direction towards “adulthood.”
“The garden has been developed and planted by the Friends, and we’ve nearly gone as much as we can do … the next phase really involves the botanic garden centre and what council needs to do to get the garden … to completion,” Mr Bentley said.
“That’s quite exciting … we’ve worked in a good partnership with council over the years to get the botanic garden to where it is and it sets the direction for activities of the garden to involve guided tours and educational activities and community activities … and we’re looking forward to basing those around the botanic garden centre.
“One of the key things we would like to see as the partnership advances is three garden staff based at the botanic garden – we’ve suggested a hands-on curator, a gardener, and an apprentice gardener … and to work hand-in-hand with the Friends in the garden.”
Mr Bentley said the garden has become well-known in Australia and beyond – especially for its eucalyptus arboretum.
He said that the garden’s plants are well-documented in botanical collection management database IrisBG, featuring a map of species at the site.
“The comments we get is [that] the botanic garden gets better and better.”
The draft master plan will be open for feedback from June 2 to 27.
