FRIENDS of the North Coast Regional Botanic Garden are asking readers of News Of The Area to help them name their electric buggies, now they have two.

Rather than being called ‘the old one’ or ‘the big one’, with the addition of the smart new eight-seater buggy, joining the original six-seater vehicle, the pair need names.

These buggies are quiet achievers around Coffs’ beautiful Botanic Garden.

As well as being used for garden tours the electric buggies are used for the transport of guests to weddings as part of the garden’s venue hire, and for internal transport to other special events and festivals at any one of the eight outdoor venue sites.

All proceeds from these tours and hire of the electric buggies with the volunteer drivers for special events go to support the garden.

The President of the Friends of the Garden, Graham Tupper, told NOTA, “It is time to give the e-buggies some names other than ‘old’ and ‘new’ or ‘larger’ and ‘smaller’.

“For example, the botanic garden in Canberra has its Flora Explorer vehicle.

“We are looking for two simple names for our pair of e-buggies inspired by the local flora of the Coffs Harbour region.”

Graham explained that the Botanic Garden logo is based on the small Broad-leaved Geebung flower (Persoonia stradbrokensis).

“We think there is plenty of scope to find two floral names that suit our e-buggies – one larger and one smaller.

“It could be the common names of plants or the scientific name, or the Gumbaynggirr name for a plant or a hybrid name.

“One name could be a tree (big buggy), and the other a shrub (small buggy)… the possibilities are endless.

“For some starting inspiration check out the Botanic Garden website under the discovery walks and garden areas section for lists of plants and some of their Gumbaynggirr names (under the Garlambirla walk) which are found in the garden,” suggested Graham.

The e-buggy naming entries will be judged by a panel of the volunteer garden guides, with the winning names printed on to the front of each e-buggy.

“The winning nominator will be acknowledged by the Friends with the prize of a specially tailored tour for their family or friends at the garden on the e-buggy, perhaps to find the plants that inspired the new e-buggy names,” Graham said.

To enter your suggestions for both the names of the two North Coast Botanic Garden e-buggies, all you need to do is write the word BIG, and enter your name for the new eight-seater e-buggy, and then SMALL, and write your name for the old six-seater e-buggy.

Email your ‘Name The Buggies’ entries to botanyCBG@gmail.com.

Please include your full name, address, mobile phone number and/or email address.

OR, if you prefer to make your entry by hand, you can print or clearly hand-write your details and name suggestions on a piece of paper and drop it into the North Coast Regional Botanic Gardens at Hardacre Street at the corner of Coffs Street, Coffs Harbour NSW 2450.

The closing date for Name The Buggies entries is Wednesday midnight 14 June.

NOTA will announce the winners, as chosen by the panel of garden guides, in the Friday 23 June edition.

By Andrea FERRARI