Victoria State Rose Garden Timeline
| 1976 December 3 | Premier Hamer declares Victoria ‘Garden State’. |
| 1978 May | Basic concept for a State Rose Garden established. |
| 1980 March 11 | Premier approves garden ’in principle’ at Werribee Park. |
| 1981 February 14 | Formal announcement, with informal assurance that roses would be provided by donation. |
| 1981/1982 | Priestley, Phillips & Co dug up and transported 2250 roses from Portland to Werribee. |
| 1982 | CIVINEX excavated bowl shape. |
| 1983/1984 | No government money so stagnation. MMBW took over nightmare. |
| 1984/1985 | All roses lifted to allow reforming of beds, establishment of paths and seeding of grass areas. |
| 1986 November 9 | Official opening of stage 1. |
| 1992 | By Xmas no work had been done so the grass was out of control, and the plants carrying thousands of hips and deadheads. Crunch time with threat of bulldozer. Petition raised by Priestley and public appeal for volunteers to assist in maintaining garden. 50 were enrolled. |
| 1993 June 21 | Victoria State Rose Garden Supporters Group incorporated |
| 1998 | Stage One Heritage Border established. |
| 2000 | Realignment of fence allows Stage Two of Heritage Border. Centenary of Federation Grant obtained for establishment of Federation Leaf. |
| 2001 | David Austin Rosebud donated by David Austin Roses planted. |
| 2001 November 11 | Federation Leaf officially opened. |
| 2003 | World Federation Of Rose Societies grants VSRG ‘Garden of Excellence’ status. |
| 2010 February | Lukas White a local web designer from MC Webs offered to build a website for the supporters. Wal Johnson & Veronica O’Brien liaised with Lukas in setting up the website. |
| 2012 November | Official Opening of New Archway Entrance to the Rose Garden |
| 2013 November | The supporters asked garden guru, Jane Edmanson (3AW/Gardening Australia) to become the Garden patron which she readily accepted. |
| 2013 December | The first State Rose and Garden Show was held in the Garden. This is a Wyndham City Council initiative to showcase the garden as a community asset. The shows popularity saw it continue till 2019. Covid then intervened. |
| 2013 | Christine Menagazzo, one of the Supporters, started the Rose Garden Facebook page and this was instantly popular. |
| 2016 | Heritage Council Award given to Victoria State Rose Garden Supporters Inc. for outstanding commitment to creating and maintaining a significant garden and enhancing an important heritage site. |
| 2018 April | 25th Anniversary of the Supporters Group was celebrated. |
| 2018 June | The Gazebo in the centre of the Tudor Rose was rebuilt and planted out again. |
A Short History
The original concept of a State Rose Garden arose when Victoria was declared The Garden State, in 1976.
After much hard work and lobbying by a few dedicated members of the National Rose Society, particularly Mr. James (Jim) Lyall Priestly OAM, it became a reality in 1986
Mervyn Hayman Danker FRAIA and James Priestly co-designed a plan which was accepted by the State Government and developed by the Public Works Department in Stages from 1986 to 2001.
On the 9th November 1986, the official opening of Stage One of the Victoria State Rose Garden was performed.
The opening was blessed with sunshine and a fine display by the plants now in place.
An official opening does not guarantee that work will continue. Changes of State Government and economic rationalisation left no doubt that the Rose Garden was about to be engulfed and terminated. The bulldozers were to move in.
A petition against this move resulted in many hundreds of signatures supporting the completion, but it had to be shown that there were sufficient volunteers to carry out the work involved in both the current Garden and any extension. In June 1993 The Victoria State Rose Garden Supporters Werribee Park Inc was registered.
The Supporters work very closely with the current management of the Tourism Precinct, Parks Victoria and the staff of The Mansion at Werribee Park. The joint efforts show clearly in the standard of care and upkeep of the Garden and its surrounds.
The Heritage Border
In August 1997 it was decided to utilise the fenceline between the Mansion and the Rose Garden by creating a Heritage Border. With the help of Werribee Park staff and a grant from Parks Victoria, 44 varieties of Climbing Species and Old Roses were planted to form a hedge on the fence. In 1998 a front row of bush Heritage Roses was planted consisting of 49 varieties. Many of these were species roses with historical ties to the modern rose.
In 2000 a further 400 metres of Border was planted with Heritage Roses, This now gives Victoria one of the best collections of Heritage Roses in Australia.
The Federation Leaf
In 2000, the Supporters were successful in obtaining a grant from the Centenary of Federation to develop and plant a stylised leaf. The Federation Leaf contains 50 beds of roses bred by Australians and represents many Australian Breeders. In addition, eight climbing roses have been planted to climb the watering poles.
The Rosebud
A donation from David Austin Roses in 2000, saw the Supporters in the nice position of planting out a perfumed garden of David Austin (or English) roses in the shape of a Rosebud. Some 60 varieties, both climbing and bush, were planted and have developed quickly. The area has been paved to retain a more formal appearance.
New Formal Entrance
The Entrance to the Victoria State Rose Garden was originally hidden behind a screen of trees from the carpark of the Mansion at Werribee Park. Improvement was long overdue with visitors unable to locate the garden entrance because of this wind screen of pine trees and other foliage and inadequate signage.
To make the Garden more visible to the public, in 2013 the volunteers, together with public support, found the funds to erect a new Archway over the front entrance.
The project to erect a commanding new entrance commenced in 2012 and then president, Mrs Veronica O'Brien, said that the completed project would be a great achievement for the group after more than ten years of requesting a defined entrance.
Mr Alex Quinn, President for 2012/14 was project manager. The Department of Sustainability and Environment through the Vision for Werribee Plains was the major financial contributor , along with Parks Victoria, City of Wyndham, Wyndham Cache, Wyndham, Werribee and Hoppers Crossing Rotary Clubs, interested Individuals and last but by no means least our 145 Supporters.
VSRGS acknowledges the contributions of Mr Mervyn Hayman-Danker as the architect of the new entrance and the input of local design and fabrication companies which was vital to the success of the project. The VSRG Supporters are extremely grateful to all mentioned.
Visitors are particularly welcome to come down on sunny Wednesdays or Saturdays (mornings) and talk to the volunteers as they carry out their pleasant duties. We are very proud to show off our Garden.
