IT'S not every day your humble, little garden is declared "better than Floriade". But that was the some of the lovely feedback Ursula Reid received after opening up her secret oasis to guests over the weekend.
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More than 450 visitors traipsed through the open garden at Thorpe Avenue, Queanbeyan and raised almost $3,000 for HOME in Queanbeyan as a result of the event.
"Everybody loved it; they thought it was a haven. So peaceful and so wonderful. It was a very, very positive weekend for everyone," Ms Reid said.
"A few people had come through just for Floriade and they came over [to my garden]. There were a couple of comments saying that was my garden was a lot better than Floriade, which was really amazing."
The garden is dedicated to Ms Reid's late husband, Keith. It features a beautiful pepper tree and basking underneath its shade was one of Keith's favourite things about the garden.
There is a personalised bench dedicated to Keith and a number of Asian-style sculptures dotted around the grounds.
On the weekend, visitors were treated to Chrissie Shaw, a well-known entertainer who played the piano accordion and wandered through the garden. Ms Reid said it really added to the ambience of the space.
"A lot of people sat and enjoyed a coffee; they absorbed the atmosphere. It was really nice; it made quite a difference to the whole thing. It was much more relaxing and very, very nice," she said.
"It's the first time I've ever done [an open garden event], so it was a bit nerve-wracking. I am exhausted but it was really worth it."
HOME in Queanbeyan manager, Anne Pratt was grateful for the donation that will help cover the $320,000 in annual costs of running the facility.
Residents contribute about $170,000 in rent but the rest is largely covered by donations from the community.
"It's fantastic," Ms Pratt said.
"This will help us a lot. Without people like Ursula, people who fundraise money for us, we wouldn't exist.
"We couldn't run without their donations as we don't rely on government funding, so it's very important for us."