Autumn is a lovely time to visit the Alfred Nicholas Memorial Garden and Dandenong Ranges Botanical Garden. This is because the deciduous trees put on their new robe of golden hues then.
It was a crisp morning with a good dash of sunlight when 5 local guides and friends met up at 10:30am on Saturday 23 April 2022 at the huge ornate front gates of the Alfred Nicholas Memorial Garden.
“Alfred Nicholas purchased this land n 1929 to build his summer residence and then proceeded to buy surround land to add to his estate.
“Alfred and his brother George developed the Aspro pain killer. It was originally a German discovery however supplies were cut off during World War I. George, a chemist from Melbourne, rediscovered the formula, the Australian Government awarded the patent and the Nicholas fortune began.”
The head gardener was formerly employed at the Bureau of Etymology at Kew Gardens. “The gardens feature a blend of native and exotic trees including mountain ash, gingkos, maples and liquid ambers.”
In 1965 the Nicholas family donated “the gardens to the people of Victoria by way of the local shire. In 1972 the council handed the garden over to the Victorian State Government.” [1]
The main feature of the place is a pond (some call it a lake) with wooden arched bridges and a boathouse. To get there you have to walk quite a long way down a dirt track or take a slightly shorter but steeper route with stairs. We took the latter on the way down and the former on the return trip.
There were so many vantage points to take picturesque photos and we were kept very occupied in our enterprise. I saw a very well camouflaged Eastern yellow breasted robin on the way back – it is very hard to spot it among the yellow and green foliage, but I’ve included a close up of it in my photo collages.
Our next stop for the day was lunch in Olinda. Parking was hard to come by on that long weekend (we Australians call the 3 day weekend we get when Monday is also a public holiday – which in this case happened to be ANZAC Day).
The café I had in mind was closed that Saturday so we thought we would try Pie in the Sky. Alas, there were long queues of people waiting to be served at this very popular café so we had to try elsewhere. There were a handful of other cafes in Olinda and we found one that had only a few people in it. It was the Olinda Fish Café. We wondered initially if the food might not be that good but we decided to give it a go. We did not regret our choice as we were very impressed with our fish and chips. The fish was lightly battered and crispy without being oily and the chips were done very nicely too. I liked my snack pack which came with salad. I washed it down a bottle of Australian family owned Bundaberg pineapple and coconut sparkling drink. It was modestly priced and perfect for my lunch. As to why it was not so popular, I suppose fish and chips isn’t something one associates with a day out at 569m above sea level (!). But, this little café definitely deserves more attention than it was getting.
We walked around the little town for a short while after lunch. I spotted a collie statue in a shop window that reminded me of my former collie. We had a browse in a few shops and were very taken by some colourful handmade scarves made by an elderly local.
The Dandenong Ranges Botanic Garden is about 10 minutes walk from the edge of the town. We did not know what the parking situation was going to be like there so decided to walk rather than drive. Incidentally, both these gardens are free to enter but donations are encouraged.
There were beautiful fragrant cyclamens for sale at the entrance to the gardens which takes you through the gift shop. There are lots of things to capture your attention in the garden – while the rhododendrons are now past their prime, you can still see some beautiful hydrangeas that come in such beautiful shades of mauves, whites and pale blues. There are also other colourful flowers and even a bright red spotted toadstool known as the Amanita muscaria, commonly known as the fly agaric or fly amanita.
But it was after all, the autumn show we had come to see – the deciduous plants putting on their colourful autumn garb. In this we were not disappointed – especially around the two lakes on the property as well as the rotundas. I will let my photos speak for themselves.
As the sun was starting to get lower on the horizon, we were treated to a special sunny display by the sun through the trees. A moment later, I had to pause to admire the sight of its last rays shining upon amber coloured leaves through the trees overhead.
We finished our evening with a coffee at the Ranges Café. As they were about an hour from closing, we had to have our takeaway coffee in the outdoor seating area. As we sipped our coffee, we chatted about the lovely day we had had. We parted to head back to our cars after 5:30pm.
Then, as if it were icing on a cake, as I drove home along Burwood Highway toward the city direction, I was treated to the most amazingly beautiful twilight. Unfortunately there are no photos of this last bit of my day as I was driving alone and the best view was actually in the middle of the highway (!). Perhaps if you ever do visit Melbourne around this time, you might keep this in mind. It can be quite a treat.
Do you experience autumn where you live or is it the weather pretty much the same all year round?
What’s your favourite thing about autumn?
[1] Parks Victoria signage at entrance
