Araluen Botanic Park celebrated its 25th birthday in style on Tuesday 1 September with over 100 people gathering to remember the organisations history.
The crowd, sprinkled with political and government dignitaries, volunteersand staff reminisced on the rags to riches story of the Park according to Araluen Botanic Park General Manager Grant Nixon.
“The day was a great chance to remember how far the Park has come from our humble beginnings,” Mr Nixon said.
“The Park today of manicured lawns, stunning gardens and restored infrastructure is in stark contrast to the ruins we inherited.
“It is important we celebrated the contributions of all our volunteers and in particular those who fought so hard for the survival of the Park in the early days.
“It is a fantastic milestone to reflect on but we need to continue to develop revenue streams and negotiate a long term lease with our government partners to secure our future.
The birthday celebrations also coincided with the launch of the 2015 “It’s Yates Springtime at Araluen.”
The opening ceremony was awash with a blaze of colour with some 120,000 tulip plants in full bloom.
“Our garden looks fantastic at this time of year and it was fitting that it was in all its glory for the big day.
“We should see the best of our tulips over the next few weeks so I would encourage everyone to get down and see the amazing displays on offer.Our guests can wander the walk trails to get up close with the gardens or you can hitch a leisurely ride with our dedicated train service.”
The Village Square will also play host to live music, outdoor café and food vendors and sculptures by Jalmer Wrought and Dave Wellard.
Araluen Botanic Park is proudly supported by the Department of Parks and Wildlife.
For further information on this release or other activities at Araluen Botanic Park please contactGrant Nixon on (08) 9496 1171,
or E-mail: ldunn@araluenbotanicpark.com.au
Araluen Botanic Park’s journey has included restoring the Swimming Pool
