dahlia society of victoria

Gold Service member Bob Yeomans died peacefully in Melbourne on Sunday 5 January 2026 at the age of 85 years.

Bob was a giant of the Dahlia Society of Victoria.

After joining the Society Bob went on to become a top dahlia exhibitor, exhibiting in the Open section and taking out more than one Blue Ribbon in the State Show. He won the Kiwi Seedling Trophy four times: 1991,1997,2003 and 2007. In 1997 it was with the bloom ‘Shirley Yeomans’ that is still available today.

In the 1980’s Bob Yeomans took on a more prominent role in the organisation of the Society starting as the Promotions Officer finding new ways to promote the dahlia and the club. Bob was a born communicator and went on to hold many roles including President, Treasurer, event MC, Show Manager and Conference organiser - all the while exhibiting and breeding. He took particular pride in overseeing the movement of State Dahlia Show from Horti Hall in Melbourne to the Mount Waverley Community Centre. The DSV Gold Service Award was presented to Mr. Bob Yeomans in 1999.

After retiring from committee positions he remained active as a speaker and as a lively and encouraging voice at the monthly meetings of the Society.

For more recent members of the DSV, Bob is renowned for developing ‘Tiny Tot’ dahlias, a new strain of bedding dahlias created from seedlings in Australia. In the December 2016 issue of DAHLIAS Magazine Bob recalled:

“It took three years to produce 10 varieties worth keeping. Everyone that saw them seemed spellbound. The positive feed-back I received from garden club members and the viewing public at local shows was overwhelming. They loved these low growing bedding dahlias with their vibrant colours and firm long stems. I called them Tiny Tots and the name has stuck.”

With his trademark hat and welcoming grin, sitting behind a table of stunning Tiny Tots, Bob was a perennial presence at the annual State Dahlia Show that will be sorely missed.

The Society was so lucky to have Bob. All through the time he was part of the Society he really gave all.