Royal Botanic Garden, Cranbourne: the Australian Garden

On a recent visit to this Garden, I was self indulgently snapping away, without bothering to note the names of the plants, or information about the different parts of this huge Garden.

So there's not much detail in this post, but I hope you can see something of the grandeur, the originality of design, and a sense of the sheer scale of the place.

Australian Aboriginals make hand prints which can be found in many caves in Australia. This is called stencil art, and was used to record people's presence and relationship with the site.

The use of hard materials like rocks is superb and skilled, setting off the plantings perfectly, and providing a naturalistic setting...

... and space for children to play and absorb an appreciation of nature.

I was taken by this shrub with its large bunches of fruit, but I didn't know what it was called. Id. problem solved by Denise - it's Rhodosphaera rhodanthema.

Contrasting colours and textures and shapes ... sigh ...

There's a Gondwana garden here, with lush rainforest plants that grew on the ancient supercontinent that broke up about 180 million years.

Replicating the stony creeks that are a significant feature of the Australian countryside...

This stunning place is relatively new for a botanical garden. It was established  in 1970. Later more land was purchased and the gardens extended.