Floral Greetings

The National Library of Scotland has records relating to the Grand Lodge of the Order. Extrapolating from these Rules, Reports of Annual General Meetings, and Balance Sheets, some of which are both numbered and dated, the Order originated in 1878-9. However, evidence from the PO Directory and archival holdings can be used to outline a fuller history.

More than 100 gardener lodges are known to have attended a meeting in Edinburgh during 1859 to discuss the organisation of the existing Grand Lodge of the Ancient Order. It would be reasonable to suppose that irreconcilable differences caused a schism in that year, creating the bodies known first as the Ancient Order of Free Gardeners (Western Grand Lodge) and the Ancient Order of Free Gardeners (located in Edinburgh and Leith). An Eastern and Western Grand Lodge appear from this date in several sources. A minute book of the latter dated 1859-84 supports the above inference. It is in Glasgow City Archives.

The N.U.O.F.G

The Free Gardeners survived in Africa and Australia into the 21st century. The Grand Lodge of Free Gardeners (Africa) was based in Cape Town, South Africa. The Grand United Order of Free Gardeners of Australasia Friendly Society Limited represented the Australian lodges. Both were affiliated to the Ancient Order. Other lodges were started in the United States, Canada and the West Indies, with varying degrees of success.