Home Masthead Image

Blooming 9 - 11 March

Ballarat Botanical Gardens | 10am - 5pm daily

2024 Festival Highlights

  • Begonia Parade: The 2024 Power FM Begonia Parade will take place on Monday 11 March with over 30 community groups, schools and local businesses taking part in a vibrant procession along Wendouree Parade. 
  • Conservatory display: Showcasing a signature collection of rare begonias, the Conservatory display will return, this year playing homage to the redevelopment of the Ballarat Fernery – one of Australia’s oldest ferneries – that is set to open in time for the festival. Visitors can expect to see an exciting display inspired by the spiral shapes of fern fronds.   
  • Family entertainment: For the aspiring green thumbs, there will be kids’ activities including a giant maze, live butterfly tent and bug exploration zone; arts and crafts; Integra Tiny Town (featuring mini cubbies for families to self-explore); and face painters. 
  • Roving entertainment: Bright and beautiful bees, butterflies and ladybugs on stilts will be roaming the Ballarat Botanical Gardens. Running throughout the whole festival, catch a photo with one of the spectacular creatures.   
  • Markets: Browse offerings market stall holders, featuring an assortment of plants, flowers and garden-related gifts.  
  • Begonia letters: Situated in the Ballarat CBD, next year’s big begonia letters will feature the work of Wadawurrung Traditional Owner and artist Billy O’Toole.
  • Food and drink: Discover Ballarat’s rich culinary scene with an assortment of local beers, wines and spirits available at the Begonia Bar as well as two precincts with food trucks. 

Stay tuned for the full event program announcement early 2024.

Discover the origins

As early as the 1890’s the Ballarat Botanical Gardens has featured a collection of tuberous begonias. Tubers were imported from the famous English nursery Blackmore and Langdon, now a fourth-generation family nursery, in 1901 entering our collection via the onsite nursery quarantine facility.

Learn More
HOW TO

Grow a begonia

The City of Ballarat horticultural team tend to our Begonias for 10 months of the year. Here is a little bit about what they do to keep our famous begonias at their finest for the Ballarat Begonia Festival.

Learn more
town hall image

Subscribe for updates

Get our latest program and event updates to your inbox.

Contact Us

Phoenix Building
25 Armstrong Street South, Ballarat Central VIC 3350




Explore Ballarat
partner logo
partner logo

Copyright © 2022 Ballarat Begonia Festival