David RustonPrint Page

The sculpture commemorates David Ruston (1930 - 2019) who was known for his development of roses.  

From his teenage years David was a passionate exponent of roses, beginning with extending his father’s rose plantings of 500 bushes to 3,000 bushes by 1968 and the eventual 50,000 bushes covering 11 hectares. This world acclaimed garden, the largest private collection of roses in the southern hemisphere, has been officially recognised as “The National Collection of Roses”. 

He has also went to many Australian cities and towns donating his time and flowers for a variety of charities. His unique style of arranging magnificent displays in memorable containers at breakneck speed while entertaining the audience with a continuous flow of knowledgeable comments, hilarious asides and repartee have made him a much sought after keynote speaker.

He joined his first rose society, the Rose Society of Victoria, in 1948 at the age of 18 and began exhibiting roses at shows soon after this. He became the inaugural president of Heritage Roses in Australia in 1986 and the president of the World Federation of Rose Societies from 1991 to 1994.

He was granted Life membership to the National Rose Society of Australia, the Rose Society of South Australia, the Royal National Rose Society, the American Rose Society, the Indian Rose Society, Heritage Roses of Australia, Garden Clubs of Australia, the Renmark Garden Club and the Renmark Agricultural and Horticultural Society.

David has achieved worldwide recognition with rose awards including the T.A. Stewart Memorial award 1966, the Australian Rose award 1982, the World Federation of Rose Societies Silver Pin 1988 and Gold Medal 2004, the Dean Ross Memorial award 1997 and the most prestigious rose award of all, the Dean Hole Medal in 1994 from the Royal National Rose Society.

In 1984 David received an Order of Australia for Services to Horticulture.

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