Friends of the late Daylesford designer Stuart Rattle remained quiet this morning after his boyfriend pleaded guilty to his murder. 

Mr Rattle's body was found in his burnt-out South Yarra home in December. Police alleged he had been killed days before his body was discovered by firefighters.

Michael O'Neill, 48, today pleaded guilty to charges of murder and arson in Melbourne Magistrates Court.

Mr Rattle was a prominent designer, who owned the Musk Farm outside of Daylesford. 

He held an open day in late November to raise money for The Wombat Hill Botanical Gardens in Daylesford.

The event raised tens of thousands of dollars to secure the future of the gardens.

Friends of the Wombat Hill Botanical Gardens declined to comment about the guilty plea on Tuesday.

Member and friend Patrice O'Shea told The Courier earlier this year that Mr Rattle's life was "violently and shockingly cut short".

"But he lives on in all of us. He has taken a little of us with him."

Mr Rattle also did some work for the Peppers Mineral Springs Retreat in Daylesford, which declined to comment on Tuesday.