Newsletters and Meetings:  

Over the past financial year three Newsletters were prepared, July and November 2024 and  April 2025 (in place of March) and have been placed on the Friends website.  

The Friends have held three general meetings, July and November 2024 and March 2025.  

Annual General Meeting:  

The AGM was held on the 16th July 2024. Eight members attended, with one on-line.  There were 8 apologies.  

Committee positions were filled as follows, John Hawker, President, Brendon Gray, Secretary  and Public Officer and Jill Hawker, Treasurer.  

Instagram:  

I reported last year on the Friends Instagram site for the first time. This has been beneficial  in promoting the features and values of the Gardens. I want to thank Sarah Jardine for  managing the Instagram site. I also want to encourage everyone to forward their favourite  photographs for posting on Instagram.  

Website:  

The Friends website https://fovg.org.au/ has been upgraded and additional information and  photographs have been included. The Friends Newsletters are included on the website.  

Garden Volunteers:  

By far the most important Friends development over the past year has been the  commencement of the Garden Volunteer program. While 3 sessions were held in 2018-19,  it took a large amount of work and negotiation with Stonnington Council to achieve the  reinstatement of the Volunteers program on a Saturday morning to make it available to all  members of the community. The first working bee occurred on Saturday 23rd November,  followed by 14 December, 15 February, 12 April, 10 May and 14 June. Gardening tasks  completed have included seedling planting, weeding, and pruning of garden beds in areas as  designated by Adam De Zoete Council officer in charge. We now have eight inducted  Volunteers who have been regular attendees.  

I want to acknowledge the assistance provided by Deborah Neumann (Environmental  Education Officer) to get the Volunteer program off the ground and to Jill Hawker for the  enormous editing tasks in preparing the documents required to by Council. And a thank you  to Adam De Zoete, who has welcomed and guided the volunteers at each working bee.  

Garden Inspection Walk:  

The annual Garden inspection walk was held on Tuesday 10 June with Council staff Dominic  Mazza, Adam De Zoete, David Edwards (arborist) and Devon (apprentice).  

Attending from the Friends were John Hawker, Sarah Jardine, Maureen Costigan, Ian  Amess, and Jenny Chapman. 

The main matters discussed included;  

High Street Fence & Beds  

1. Celtis (Hackberry): Prune, lift canopy and remove deadwood.  
2. Remove Chinese elm sapling beside west gate pillar  
3. Variegated Ligustrum: Shape for form and health.  
4. Drainage: Review and address any drainage issues. Drainage map (copy held by  Marella Stow, Open Space Planner)  
5. New pit constructed in brick drain near bins  
6. Clean out pit (now raised due to Chinese Elm roots) and understand function of PVC  pipe entering from the east  
7. Plant Tristaniopsis laurina to fill existing gap (formerly Blackwood which died)  8. New Quercus sp. (Q. dentata hybrid, not Q. cerris, Turkey Oak) planted in bed 2024  9. Cut back overcrowding vegetation, formative prune to a single straight trunk  

East Shrubbery  

Remove privet seedlings (Ligustrum lucidum)  

1. Address graffiti on shelter  
2. Remove Celtis Seedlings  
3. Review extent of Celtis tree pruning overhanging brick fence (Legge boundary)  4. Consider Brick edging near Lilly Pilly.  
4. Increase planting of Ruscus (all species) and Danae in east bed and around shelters  6. Plant new ferns, Fatsia and Cordyline in SE corner to screen new paling fence  

North East  

1. Remove Phoenix palms, Privet and Celtis Seedlings and Elm suckers  2. Probably remove young Flame tree, Brachychiton acerifolius due to overcrowding  3. Infill Planting: Complete around Ian’s palms.  
2. Circle Seat Area:  

 Consider sowing grass seed near the seat.  

 Apply mulch around the circle seat.  

1. Remove Elm Sucker and Celtis seedlings  
2. Remove Ilex Stump.  
3. Viburnum odoratissimum: Plant hedge as replacement to screen fence and flats  

North / Murray Street  

1. Plant Tristaniopsis in NW corner and Magnolia grandiflora (midway) on Murray st bed  2. Remove Maple next to Prunus.  
2. Reduce height of Plane Trees  

West  

1. Plant Alpinia in area where Pampas was removed.  
2. Mulch around existing trees in lawn area.  

 Remove low Melaleuca styphelioides branch  

 Formative prune Combretum caffrum, cut back overhanging vegetation   Remove damaged Bottlebrush  

 Remove Celtis seedling. Plant Pittosporum  

1. Prune around Noticeboard  

RSL Memorial Area  

1. Rosemary: Prune and plant as needed.  
2. Prune standard roses, reduce weight and stake where required  
3. Buddleja davidii: Reduce in size.  
4. Remove/coppice Buddleja madagascariensis in SW corner, Remove from Photinia  5. Remove vegetation around Gallipoli Oak, formative prune, and mulch  

Playground  

1. Prune and thin/formative prune Zelkova  
2. Remove Variegated Elm stump beside Quercus douglasii  
3. Remove dead Pistachio tree and plant new Crepe Myrtle,  
4. Prune/hedge Hibbertia scandens to fence  
5. Install low Federation fence to protect new planting in west bed  
6. Prune/hedge Bougainvillea to fence line  

General  

1. Damaged seat in SW corner  
2. Damaged seats will be repaired in the short term, then replaced later in the calendar  year with Albert Park seats. Any plaques will be removed from old seats and placed  on new.  
3. Shelters to be cleaned and gutters cleared  
4. Replace light globe on High Street west gate pillar  

Garden Works:  

Path and brick drain works: On Wednesday 23 April a site meeting was held with  Dominic Mazza, Coordinator Parks and Open Space and Marella Stow, Open Space Planner,  and Adam De Zoete, Gardener to discuss path and spoon drain works.  

The main objective of the path works is to remove trip hazards. The asphalt path is uneven,  potholed, fragmented and provides potential trip hazards. The proposed works will include  removal of bricks, lifting and resetting bricks and asphalt path repairs.  

Future works will involve improving the drainage in the south east corner which has been a  major problem for several years.  

Letter to CEO:  

This matter relates a letter sent on the 27 November 2023 to Dale Dickson, CEO regarding  the Friends concern that the sunken oval lawn (which had recently been upgraded) would  quickly become degraded again with the return to unlimited “off-leash” access that dogs are  allowed. The Friends were also concerned that this unlimited “off-leash” access on the oval  would make it difficult for members of the community, especially young children, to play and  picnic on this area  

A reply was received from the CEO on 18 December 2023. In part the reply included  In the interests of ensuring our open spaces are being effectively utilised in  accordance with prevailing community expectations, a review of the current  off-leash arrangements at Victoria Gardens is intended for late 2024/ early  2025. I will ask Council’s Animal Management Team to reach out to the Friends of  Victoria Gardens to ensure your valuable feedback is received as a part of this  process. 

Please contact …( name supplied)… Manager Liveability and Compliance on 0408 333  892 or ( emailed supplied) should you wish to discuss the matter further.  

While this reply indicated that a review would be conducted in late 2024 to early 2025 there  appears to have been little action. Several attempts have been made to contact the  Compliance Officer since January 2025 to follow-up this issue without success. I will be  pursuing this matter with the CEO again.  

In concluding I would like to thank fellow members of the Friends Committee, Brendon  Gray, Secretary and Public Officer, Treasurer Jill Hawker and Nick Hawker for the  management of the Friends website. Thank you to Sarah Jardine for managing the  Instagram site.  

John Hawker  

President