CFRBGV Inc.

Botanic Illustrators
2025-04-02 10:00 - 15:00, 2025-04-16 10:00 - 15:00, 2025-05-07 10:00 - 15:00, 2025-05-21 10:00 - 15:00, 2025-06-04 10:00 - 15:00, 2025-06-18 10:00 - 15:00 (Australia/Melbourne) | Ballarto Road/Botanic Drive, Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
The Botanical Illustrator group meets on the first and third Wednesday of each month at 10am to 3 pm in the Elliot Centre.
Whether you are an artist, an aspiring artist or just dreaming about developing a new interest, you are welcome to come along and see what we do, get friendly advice and support.
Tea and coffee are provided, but BYO lunch.
For further information about the group, exhibitions or classes:
illustrators@rbgfriendscranbourne.org.au

Growing Friends meet every Thursday
2025-04-03 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-04-10 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-04-17 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-04-24 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-05-01 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-05-08 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-05-15 09:30 - 15:00, 2025-05-22 09:30 - 15:00 and 4 more dates | Growing Friends Nursery, Ballarto Road/Botanic Drive, Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
Growing Friends meet every Thursday from 9:30AM to 3PM to help propagate a great variety of Australian native plants from cuttings and seeds.
More information about Growing Friends.
The nursery is open to Members on Thursdays as well, to allow them buy plants from 10.00 – 2.00PM. Come along and select from a range of plants, many of which you will find in the Australian Garden.
Available: grasses, strap-leaved plants, climbers, groundcovers, indigenous plants, small & large bushes and trees.
Interested to be a member of Cranbourne Friends? Please check the Join us page.

Botanical Fabricators
2025-04-08 10:00 - 13:00, 2025-05-13 10:00 - 13:00, 2025-06-10 10:00 - 13:00 | Elliot Centre, Ballarto Road/Botanic Drive, Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
The Botanical Fabricators group meets on the second Tuesday of each month at 10am to 1pm in the Elliot Centre. Visitors and new members are always warmly welcomed, particularly if you are interested in textiles and textile crafts. Just phone or email Jenny Rollason (5998 2457 ) prior to your first visit for further information.
Please note that all Special Interest Group members must conform with the RBGV’s Child Safe Program – Find out more.

Open House: Barrie Gallacher on the tour of Sicily 2024
2025-04-10 14:00 - 15:00 | Elliot Centre, Ballarto Road/Botanic Drive, Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
Are you considering a trip to Sicily? Or did you watch a recent SBS program on Michael Portillo’s visit to Sicily and would like to learn more, especially from a Friend’s perspective?
19 Friends led by fellow Friend Alf Reina and his cousin Alfonso (Alfie) Orlando, spent 16 days touring Sicily in May 2024. Join us at our next Open House to hear Barrie Gallacher recount highlights of the trip.
This is an Open House event at the Elliot Centre, starting at 2pm. It is conducted as a hybrid event – you can attend in person or you can watch from home via livestream. Details of the link for the livestream will be available in next month’s Quicklink.
The event is free and for Members only.
Photos (clockwise from left): Monreale Cathedral and cloister, The Valley of the Temples in Agrigento, Puppet theatre in Palermo and Palatine Chapel in Palermo

Friends in the Garden (FiGs)
2025-04-15 09:00 - 12:30, 2025-05-06 09:00 - 12:30, 2025-05-20 09:00 - 12:30, 2025-06-03 09:00 - 12:30, 2025-06-17 09:00 - 12:30 | Ballarto Road/Botanic Drive, Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
Come and join the FiGs group which meets every first and/or third Tuesday of the month.
Bring your gardening gloves, kneeling mat or knee pads, sun hat and water.
Find out more.

Botanical Weaving group
2025-04-27 10:00 - 16:00, 2025-05-25 10:00 - 16:00 | Elliot Centre, Ballarto Road/Botanic Drive, Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
Botanical Weavers meet on the 4th Sunday of the month at the Elliot Centre, with two times available. One group meets in the morning from 10.00 to 12.30, and a second group meets in the afternoon, from 1.30 to 4.00.
New participants are welcome, and no experience is necessary. Participation involves a $5 donation for morning or afternoon tea (in either of the two small group sessions).
Find out more:

Botanical Weaving group

Raising Rarity - Presentation and Tours
2025-05-18 09:30 - 12:00 | Auditorium, Cnr Ballarto Road and Botanic Drive , Cranbourne, Victoria, 3977, Australia
Raising Rarity is an RBGV program designed to engage the wider community in the conservation of threatened Victorian plant species.
“With over a third of plants in Victoria listed as threatened, we need the help of the wider community to join us in our conservation efforts. With community involvement, we can grow more plants in more locations and in climates they may be better suited to” says Dr Meg Hirst, Seed Ecologist at RBGV.
Following ground-breaking work with school students, local government, and other botanic gardens, the newest aspect of this work is the possible commercialisation of a rare plant collection. RBGV is trialling rare plants in the nursery and research beds at Royal Botanic Gardens Cranbourne with the aim of making these available for purchase by the public in 3 or 4 years. RBGV’s scientists and horticulturists are hoping to explore the ‘horticultural potential’ of each plant to determine whether it is suitable for inclusion in the program. The ultimate goal is to find endangered plants that are attractive and easy to grow, as possible sales will help preserve the plant for the future.
At our event, a presentation by Matt Henderson, Raising Rarity Project Officer (Horticulture) and Tash van Velzun, horticulturist and RBGV Education Officer, will be followed by two tours in the Australian Garden:
– to the Research Beds, to see rare plants currently being developed
– to the Eucalyptus Walk, to see wild-collected plants from which the rare plants may come.
This is your opportunity to find out more about this vital research which hopes to preserve our plants for the future; you may also wish to sign up to a special Raising Rarity newsletter.
To find out more and book:
https://cranbournefriends.tidyhq.com/public/schedule/events/69552-raising-rarity-presentation-and-tours
