Bringing the Garden to the Melbourne Royal Show

The Melbourne Royal Show has been a highlight of the Victorian calendar for generations. There's the animals, the rides, the showbags and the food, and every year thousands of families come through the gates to celebrate the best of farming, food and country life.

At this year's show, there was something extra to see. Southern Plants was part of a collaboration with Garden Centres of Australia (GCA), Flourish Plantscapers and the Melbourne Royal Show to bring horticulture back into the spotlight, with a series of garden displays featuring Southern Plants.

GCA and Flourish Plantscapers turned our plants into creative, inviting spaces. There were far too many varieties to name them all, but among the many plants you would have seen were Australian natives like Boronia, kangaroo paws (Anigozanthos), Lomandra and bottlebrush (Callistemon), alongside garden favourites like fountain grass (Pennisetum), Rhaphiolepis and Viburnum. Watching the displays come together, bed by bed, was a highlight of our year.

The idea was simple: show visitors what a garden can look like, and how easy it is to bring more plants into their own lives. Whether you have a big backyard, a small courtyard or just a balcony, there's a plant that will suit your space, and there were plenty of ideas to take home.

For us, the Royal Show was the perfect place to do it. It's one of the few events where three or four generations of a family walk around together. Grandparents who have gardened all their lives stood next to kids seeing a kangaroo paw up close for the first time. That's exactly the kind of connection gardening creates.

Gardening is one of the best things families can do together. Kids love to dig, plant, water and check every day to see what's changed. Along the way they learn where food comes from, how to care for something living and how to be patient for a result. Grown-ups get time outdoors, gentle exercise and a break from screens. Everyone gets a space at home that's a little greener, calmer and more alive.

And every plant in the ground helps the planet too. Gardens cool our homes and streets, feed birds, bees and butterflies, and bring a little more nature into our neighbourhoods. Natives like kangaroo paws, bottlebrush and Boronia are especially good at bringing birds and pollinators into the garden. At Southern Plants, our pots are made from 95% recycled Australian plastic and, with their labels, can go straight into your kerbside recycling bin. So the good a plant does starts before it even leaves the nursery.

A big thank you to Garden Centres of Australia, Flourish Plantscapers and the Melbourne Royal Show for making this collaboration happen. Thank you also to everyone who stopped by the displays, asked questions and took photos. We loved seeing so many people inspired to get growing.

If the displays sparked an idea for your own garden, visit your local garden centre and ask for Southern Plants. Start with one pot or one garden bed, and see where it takes you.

Plant something. Share something. Plant with confidence.

Pilar Jackson