Victoria Branch: Walk & Talk – Trees of Melbourne’s Domain & Their Stories

The King’s Domain, adjacent to St Kilda Road, Melbourne, is a parkland landscape developed and shaped by its historic and on-going function as a rare government domain. The parkland’s historic features demonstrate in particular the interests of the Victorian era, and its memorials show the on-going influence of the parkland’s function as a government domain.

As part of the AGHS’s focus on trees this year, this walk and talk through part of the Domain will cover the stories carried by specific trees: their commemorative and historic as well as botanic value. The event will run for around 90 minutes.

Tour Leader: John Hawker. John began his career working with arborists and gardeners, hands on, until he was offered a position at the Royal Botanic Gardens Melbourne in December 1982. During his time at the Gardens he worked as a trees officer, and on several major projects, particularly a project on Victorian significant trees in collaboration with the National Trust. John’s interest in maintaining historic landscapes was expanded when he was awarded a Churchill Fellowship in 1989. This took him to the U.K., where he worked at National Trust sites including Biddulph Grange, Edinburgh Botanic Gardens and Kew Gardens. John was a member of the AGHS Victorian Branch Committee for over ten years and has maintained a strong relationship with the AGHS ever since.

Time: 10:00 am to 11:30 am. Please arrive at 9:45 am so we can start the walk on time.
FREE to Members and Friends. Please book at Trybooking, so we can communicate with you if there are any changes.
Book: at Trybooking.
Meeting place: Outside Visitor Centre, Royal Botanical Gardens, Birdwood Avenue.
Parking: Park along Birdwood Avenue (parking is free on a Sunday).
Public Transport:

• Tram: Stop 19 – Shrine of Remembrance on St Kilda Road – Trams 3, 5, 6, 16, 58, 64, 67 and 72
• Train: Anzac Metro Station – the Cranbourne, Pakenham and Sunbury lines connects to this station.

Enquiries: Trevor Pitkin 0414 852 916