Townsville City Council workers are being left frustrated as thieves repeatedly steal roses, including entire rose bushes, from Queens Gardens.
The thefts include about 48 roses specifically grown for veterans attending Victory in the Pacific commemorations last month.
Acting Mayor Ann-Maree Greaney said there was absolutely no excuse to steal from Council's pristine botanic gardens.
"These thefts are mindless, senseless and absolutely unacceptable," Cr Greaney said.
"The blatant disrespect to our staff and our community by a small group of individuals is staggering. Our gardens staff put an incredible amount of hard work into making Queens Gardens beautiful – and they take special pride in our rose garden.
"What these thieves may not realise is that cutting roses from our rose plants can spread disease to the entire plant, permanently damaging it. Rose plants take about three years to reach maturity, so these thieves are depriving our residents and visitors of rose plants for that growth period.
"And what is perhaps worse is thieves stealing entire rose plants. Eleven plants were stolen from the garden in the last month alone. To say I'm disgusted is an understatement.
"If you are stealing from our botanic gardens you are stealing from the people of Townsville."
Cr Greaney said Council had installed a CCTV camera trailer to capture footage of thieves in the act.
"All footage of anyone stealing roses or any other plants from Queens Gardens will be handed over to Queensland Police. We do not take theft lightly," she said.
The garden is the city's largest public rose collection and features about 20 varieties of roses. Roses were first grown at Queens Gardens in the late 1800s.
Anyone with information on the theft of roses from Queens Gardens can contact Council on 13 48 10.
