Have you put in the hard yards and created a garden you’d proudly share with other avid gardeners and nature lovers?
Expressions of interest are now open for inclusion in the 2026 Castlemaine and District Festival of Gardens.
Next year’s festival will run from Saturday October 24 through to Tuesday November 3 (Melbourne Cup Day), with all gardens closed on Wednesday October 28. Ten days of open garden gloriousness! Ideally, gardens will open each day, however organisers recognise this may not be possible for every garden.
The festival showcases grand country gardens, historic gardens, verge gardens, sculpture gardens and town gardens of many varieties. To be considered, your garden must be located in Mount Alexander Shire.
The theme of the 2026 festival, The Solace of Gardening, recognises how the garden, and indeed the act of gardening, holds such a special place for so many of us. There are health benefits, it can be a chance to connect with nature and an opportunity to create and be surrounded by beauty.
To register your interest and request an application form, email festivalofgardens@gmail.com by no later than Friday August 29, 2025.
October 2026 may seem like a long way off, but the process of garden assessment and selection, as well as putting together the souvenir program and a comprehensive promotional campaign, requires 12 months for the volunteer committee. This also provides gardeners with plenty of planning and preparation time.
To get a sense of the much-loved festival, visit the website festivalofgardens.org or Facebook @CastlemaineDistrictFestivalOfGardens and Instagram @festivalofgardens
