$30,000 worth of work will be conducted by the Friends of the Gardens at Ballarat Botanical Gardens over the coming months.

Work will be done on three structures; the McDonald Gateway, eight column pergola and stone column pergola.

Preliminary works began this week and included cleaning down, repair and treatment of timber rails.

The main portion of the works is due to commence in September and will involve the cleaning down and repair of rendered surfaces.

All three structures are thought to have been originally erected in the 1920s. Their conservation is of vital importance in maintaining the historical significance of the Gardens.

City of Ballarat Councillor Samantha McIntosh said it was impressive to see the Friends of the Gardens make such a large financial contribution to the project.

“Raising such a large sum of money just goes to show how incredibly dedicated this volunteer group is to the Gardens”.

“We are very fortunate to have groups like the Friends of the Gardens in Ballarat who put in so much hard work to making our city a beautiful place to live”.

The majority of the $30,000 was raised through the sale of plants at $5 a pot.

Other work by the Friends of the Gardens includes developing education programs, undertaking research and hosting tours of the Gardens.