The Sydney Morning Herald
· collected 2026-10-07 · by Cassandra Morgan
Eltham Cemetery in Melbourne's northeast is known for its serene wisteria blooms that comfort grieving families each September. This year, however, the site has seen hundreds of visitors drawn by social media influencers, leading to disruptions and distress among those seeking quiet reflection at gravesites. The cemetery’s general manager, Julia Drew, has had to install signage warning against using graves as props or filming in a way that blocks access, after complaints from regular mourners about noisy crowds interfering with their private moments of remembrance.
Written locally by qwen2.5:14b on 2026-10-07,
using this article's own text rather than the other coverage of the
same event (that is the story summary below).
On a quiet hillside below a mud-brick artists’ colony in Melbourne’s north-east, a thick line of eucalypts and a wisteria conceal a sanctuary for grieving families.
asserted
line → conceal → families
Away from the ticketing and tours of the neighbouring Montsalvat, mourners come to Eltham Cemetery seeking solace and quiet reflection.
asserted
mourners → neighbour → solace
Some bring their families, children giggling and playing as loved ones remember those who have passed.
asserted
who → bring → those
As a girl, now-general manager Julia Drew and her sister grew up here, walking the grounds.
asserted
Drew → grow → grounds
Their mother, Rita Woolley, was still secretary manager in 2013 when they planted the wisteria, which blooms every September.
asserted
which → plant → wisteria
In the years since, it has comforted families who walk under its great arched plumes of violet and lavender.
asserted
who → comfort → violet
But this is the first year it’s brought in a hoard of camera-wielding content creators.
asserted
it → bring → creators
“Eltham Cemetery is a serene and naturally beautiful public space, but first and foremost it is an active cemetery — a place of remembrance, reflection and honouring life,” Drew said.
asserted
Drew → honour → remembrance
“Unfortunately, the significant increase in visitation has, in some instances, caused disruption and distress for families visiting loved ones.
asserted
increase → cause → ones
“We understand the interest in the wisteria and why people want to come and experience it; however, I am disappointed that this interest has impacted those who are at the cemetery to remember and honour someone they love.”
asserted
they → understand → someone
Drew has since had to put up signage at the cemetery, warning against using gravesites and memorials as “props or supports” after social media users descended, compelled by online clips of the creeper.
asserted
users → have → creeper
“Give families privacy and space – do not block access or ask cemetery visitors to photograph or film you,” the signage reads.
asserted
signage → give → you
“Please limit the time spent filming or photographing.”
Over the past fortnight, hundreds of people have come to see the plant, choking car parks inside and near the cemetery.
asserted
hundreds → limit → cemetery
Last week, staff were forced to direct traffic to prioritise people attending burials.
asserted
staff → force → burials
One woman, who visits her husband’s grave at the cemetery almost daily, was quietly grieving surrounded by families who she said paid little attention to their children yelling and running over graves.
asserted
children → visit → graves
The wisteria is draped over an archway above grave sites and ashes interments, directly in front of her husband’s plot, the woman’s daughter said.
asserted
daughter → drape → plot
“At one point, Mum was sitting quietly on the bench in front of Dad’s grave, and a man was taking photos of her and his wife, who was posing for photos – all the while standing on people’s graves,
asserted
who → sit → graves
” said the woman’s daughter, who asked not to be named to protect their family’s privacy.
asserted
who → say → privacy
“My mum was really upset by it.
asserted
mum → upset → it
She understands it’s a public place and anyone can go, but Sunday [September 27] was just too much.”
asserted
Sunday → understand → ?
Another woman, Leanne, said she visited the cemetery with her husband on September 27, and laid flowers at a family member’s grave to mark the anniversary of their death.
asserted
she → say → death
She’s not averse to crowds, the changing nature of cemeteries becoming community-friendly spaces, and people taking photos of the wisteria (as she did).
asserted
she → ’ → wisteria
And she’s certainly not averse to children, she stressed.
asserted
she → ’ → children
However, when she saw a man wheeling in camera equipment, and another filming himself in front of the wisteria and graves with a tripod and a ring light, she thought it “out of hand”.
“I actually said to him, ‘You do realise this is the final resting place of someone’, and he just ignored me,” said Leanne, who asked for her surname not to be published, also to protect her family’s privacy.
asserted
surname → see → privacy
Leanne said there were at least 50 people at the cemetery to see the wisteria when she visited.
asserted
she → say → wisteria
She suspected people preferred to see the plant for free on public land, rather than pay the $15 entry to Montsalvat to see the artist community’s own creeper.
asserted
people → suspect → creeper
It brought her some relief to know the wisteria is only in bloom for three weeks of the year.
asserted
wisteria → bring → year
By late this week, Drew said it was already hanging lower, and its flowers had dulled.
asserted
flowers → say → week
Fewer people were showing up to take photos and videos of the plant.
asserted
people → show → plant
And, after arguments on social media, some videos have since been deleted.
asserted
videos → delete → media
But while wisteria season is dying down, the general manager is already plotting how to avoid the same disruption to mourners next year.
asserted
manager → die → mourners
The Aporia
