Melbourne Botanic Gardens

I recently spent a very pleasant few days in Melbourne with cousins. One of our outings was a morning in the Melbourne Botanic Gardens - in the rain, I might add. I was amazed at the beauty of these gardens right in the centre of the inner city.

I  first visited way back in the sixties, having always felt an emotional tie as my great grandfather  E B Heyne was head plantsman there in the 1850s and drew up the plans for the original gardens under the guidance of the director Ferdinand von Mueller. Family legend would have it that he was the designer, but later research has found no indication of this, though he was certainly the draftsman.

This is not a copy of the original which was in black and white, but it is a modern replica.

It was rather surreal and kind of nice walking through gardens where my great grandfather had worked and seeing old trees which he may have seen and even planted over 160 years ago.

Liz Needle  -  linking with

 "Our World Tuesday"
 "Outdoor Wednesday"
"Wednesday Around the World"
"Wednesday Waters"