The Weston Creek Community Council and the Friends of the CIT Gardens Group have proposed to the ACT Place Names Committee a suitable name for the former CIT Gardens community facility. A proposed name for the gardens should be distinctive and appropriate for future generations. It has been proposed that the gardens be named “Fetherston Gardens” in honour of Mr Gerald Henry Fetherston MBE, the longest serving head of the CIT School of Horticulture who was deeply involved in the creation of the gardens.
Tony Fetherston, as he was known, perhaps more than any other individual, made an enormous contribution to horticultural education in the ACT. Tony Fetherston was head teacher in horticulture, and later head of the School of Horticulture at the Canberra Institute of Technology (and its predecessor institutions) from 1947 until his retirement in 1979. He occupied this position when the School of Horticulture first moved to its own campus at Heysen Street, Weston in early 1974. As head of the School, Tony Fetherston was responsible for much of the design and planning for the Heysen Street campus.
The earlier decision to respect the wishes of Tony Fetherston and his wife Margaret to scatter their ashes in the Heysen Street gardens recognised their great commitment to horticulture in the ACT. The naming of these gardens now in honour of Tony Fetherston will perpetuate this dedication, and will be a fitting and lasting tribute by the community to his lifetime work.