RBWH flourishes thanks to gardener Barb

Barb next to the gardens at the main entrance of RBWH.

The gardens at RBWH are a welcome retreat of greenery among an otherwise concrete ground. Keeping the gardens lush and beautiful is RBWH Gardener Barb Smithson.

Barb first became a member of the RBWH team in 1980, working in the laundry as a cleaner. She had always had a passion for gardening, and in 2006 received the opportunity to become a gardener at The Prince Charles Hospital.  

For Barb though, RBWH was home.  

In 2016, Barb officially claimed the post of RBWH Gardener, and the RBWH gardens have been thriving ever since.  

Each payday for many years Barb would set aside money to buy plants at flea markets for RBWH’s gardens. The gardens leading up to the Main Entrance are filled with plants of all sizes and colours, including bromeliads, grevilleas, and birds of paradise, thanks to Barb’s generosity and care. The garden beds underneath the flag poles are also a gift from Barb.  

“I’ve always loved gardening,” Barb said, “It’s probably because my grandmother was an avid gardener.”  

Barb’s grandmother moved from a dairy farm in Toowoomba to Alderley, where she maintained a prize-winning garden which was recognised in local competitions.  

After losing her mother at seven-years-old, Barb and her siblings lived with their grandmother until a work colleague at a clothing factory invited Barb home with her. From then on, Barb had a second family, who took her in and treated her like another daughter.  

No stranger to hardship, Barb not only creates a welcoming environment through the gardens she tends, but her kind and friendly personality sees her talking to patients, staff, and visitors — or anyone who could do with a bit of cheering up. 

“Patients will often come down to the garden to sit and when I can, I’ll stop and have a conversation with them. Everyone always says they like the tranquillity of the gardens,” Barb said. 

“I love that the gardens can be a part of their healing process.”