It’s a story of numbers at the Rhododendron Gardens in Blackheath.
Try 2,604 scones, 67.5 kilograms of strawberry jam, 43 litres of cream and 124 litres of milk.
Or 1,316 teas, 817 coffees and 12 litres of ice cream (for ginger beer spiders and iced coffees).
Or even 77 volunteers filling 496 half-day shifts, serving said refreshments.
That was the story of the last six weeks at the Campbell Rhododendron Gardens.
The gardens has just closed the doors on its open days, when the troop of volunteers serve Devonshire teas and sell souvenirs in The Lodge on site.
Although the gardens are open 365 days a year, the six-week stint of open days is timed to coincide with the peak flowering period, when the thousands of azaleas and rhododendrons planted within the natural bush setting are at their best.
This year was a very successful fundraising period, said committee vice-president, Deb Wells.
The money raised is all put back into the gardens, to help with maintenance, upkeep, new plantings and new infrastructure.
Ms Wells thanked the 30-odd volunteers who gathered at The Lodge last night for a celebratory drink and fabulous finger food.
As well as serving teas and selling souvenirs, locals also “meet and greet” the visitors who come from around the world – Europe, Asia, the Americas and Africa.
The “greeters” were on hand to answer myriad questions – anything from the best species of rhododendron to grow in Sydney (Sir Robert Peel and Elegans are good) to the number of rhodos in the gardens (too many to say).
The gardens also has an active volunteer gardening group, which meets every Monday to weed, prune and feed. New members are always welcome and need only turn up at 10am on a Monday to join in.
The gardens can be found at the end of Bacchante Street in Blackheath. Open all year round. Best flowering times October-November, best foliage times April-May. See www.rhodogarden.org.au.
