U-Turn Round – Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens

A group of volunteers have been working to develop and establish a botanic garden in the Lismore area of New South Wales and after many years of development officially opened the gardens in 2013. The Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens were established on Lismore’s southern outskirts and houses a massive collection of rain-forest plants alongside information signs, a designated visitor centre and picnic areas. The gardens are looked after by the Friends of Lismore Rainforest Botanic Gardens (FLRBG) and offer a wide variety of activities for the community to get involved in such as guided walks around the gardens, designated work days where volunteers can come and help to keep the garden growing and a series of trails where visitors can explore the hidden corners of the gardens.

Australian designers and interpretive installers Armsign were approached by the gardens to help tell the story of different bush tucker plants that had been planted in the garden. As they were looking to install interpretation outdoors, they required a product that was able to run without the need for mains power and that would be able to withstand the changing weather conditions; our U-Turn Round fit this brief perfectly (having supplied U-Turns to them for projects with Wudinna Council and the City of Prospect previously). The U-Turn was installed surrounding the bush tucker plants and features audio information about each of the useful aboriginal plants and their characteristics. As standard with Armsign’s projects, our U-Turn had a colourful makeover using custom paint and full colour Polycure, it was also installed onto a natural timber post to match the earthy colours and tones.

Since the U-Turn’s installation in the gardens, it has been a big talking point for visitors and has allowed them to learn more about the bush tucker rain-forest plants that the gardens care for.