A sea of fragrant roses was in full bloom at Roxborough Park Rose Garden in the Alfred Henry Whaling Memorial Reserve when Mayor of The Hills Shire, Dr Michelle Byrne visited recently.
Roxborough Park Rose Garden is a real favourite with residents – we are so fortunate to have such a treasured place in The Hills where people can take time out of their busy schedules to literally ‘stop and smell the roses. Congratulations to the team who have done such a wonderful job of caring for the gardens, as well as keeping the entire reserve in great condition for the community to enjoy.
Groundsperson Victor Busuttil explained how the gardens are kept.
“We’ve got 6,000 roses with about 80 different species here in the park. It takes a lot of work to keep it looking its best – we make sure the roses have adequate watering, we fertilise them annually and we ‘dead-head’ them once the first flush of flowers is finished.” Victor and his team will be ‘dead-heading’ the roses in the coming weeks to ensure that new growth and another surge of flowers come through this season.
“I love my job – just look at my office!” he said.
They have just planted a whole new row of Iceberg roses – the Icebergs flower for most of the year, apart from the colder months,” Victor said.
Visit the Rose Garden at Alfred Henry Whaling Memorial Reserve, corner of Roxborough Park Road and Mileham Road, Baulkham Hills – next to Waves Fitness and Aquatic Centre. For a full interview with Groundsperson Victor Busuttil, visit www.hillsfocus.com.au and click on the ‘Gardening’ tab.
