A PASSION FOR VICTORIA’S GARDENS
Tour of sites offers a variety of styles and locations
For my money there is no better place to visit if you are a garden lover than Victoria. My obsession with Victoria started more than 30 years ago when I fell in love with the Garry oak trees.
I also enjoyed the drier climate and the historic feeling of the gardens and the early spring-blooming time. I make a yearly pilgrimage to see the gardens and I try to time my visit when the Camas lilies are blooming in the Garry oak meadows in Beacon Hill Park.
Of course Victoria is filled with many more gardens but for a three or four-day tour these gardens (all open to the public) offer a variety of styles and locations that will not disappoint.
GOVERNMENT HOUSE
This site, in the historic Rockland area, covers 36 acres but only 14 acres are intensely cultivated, the rest is covered with rare and endangered Garry oak trees and old growth trees which makes it a unique and beautiful property.
It is also home to our lieutenant-governor and offers splendid views of the Olympic Mountains.
When the garden was laid out in the 1950s it was set in an English design and at one point there were 17 gardeners employed. Times changed and now friends of the garden play a very important role in maintaining and upkeep of the garden, which is free to enter. A coffee/ lunch place called The Stables has opened and offers a lovely place to enjoy a break while visiting the gardens.
The herb garden, which is, I think, one of the best in Western Canada, was designed and laid out by Noel Richardson. The lovely rose garden was copied from the famous garden at Warwick Castle.
These gardens are good to visit any time of year. There is a winter garden with shrubs blooming from November to
March; it makes for a lovely and uplifting winter walk to see life in the garden with blooming witch hazels, fragrant lonicera and Cornus mas. Primulas and bulbs carpet the ground. Heathers are another mainstay of the winter garden and Government House has replanted and extended the heather garden.
HATLEY CASTLE GARDEN
Hatley Castle, now part of
Royal Roads University, has one of the last remaining Edwardian gardens in Canada. It was the home of the Dunsmuir family of coal mining fame, and is situated on a magnificent site overlooking Esquimalt Lagoon. The gardens at Hatley are stunning and full of surprises. There are three gardens quite separate from each other so some walking is required.
The famous Italian garden is beautifully laid out and surrounded by the castle’s stone walls offering a sheltering location to the superb collection of perennial plants. A walk through the lawns lead into the serene and well-established Japanese gardens with its historic tea house, ponds and rare plants — don’t forget to check out the irrigation system — very advanced for its time.
The maples and shrubs here are unusual and each path leads to a different scene. Keep walking through to the rose garden — a huge traditional rose garden at its glorious peak in the summer months.
During my last visit the Edwardian glass houses were being restored. They are quite beautiful and well worth seeing.
FINNERTY GARDENS AT UNIVERSITY OF VICTORIA
Finnerty has one of the best collections of rhododendrons on Vancouver Island, the bulk of which came from the estate of Jeanne Buchanan Simpson. Her famous garden was planted in the 1920s in Cowichan Lake, apparently from seeds given by the famous plant hunters of the day.
In 1974 Finnerty was given a collection of rhododendrons from the Simpson estate. Some of these plants were more than 50 years old (seed collectors), huge in size and very difficult to transplant. However, they survived and thrived and are now the backbone of Finnerty. This garden is one of my favourites in all seasons.
There are well chosen perennials under planted to give interest to the superb collection of shrubs and rare trees. Finnerty is an immaculate garden without a weed and the plants are well labelled for those of us with memory problems. It is always open and free.
PLAYFAIR PARK
This garden off Quadra Street is really a park, George Radford — a well known Victorian gardener now deceased — designed and planted the perennial garden and at one time Playfair was to become a botanical garden but funds fell through and instead it became a jewel of a park.
The rhododendrons here are outstanding. In the spring the wild Camas lilies are a sight to behold. My interest in Playfair is the famous Garry oak grove — I think it might be one of the best in Victoria.
BEACON HILL PARK
The oldest city park in British Columbia, Beacon Hill contains many cultivated gardens and a stunning collection of heritage trees, giant arbutus and Garry oaks and Garry oak meadows. Visit here any time of the year — drive or bike up the Arbutus Drive to enjoy the trees.
Beacon Hill Park is situated close to the city centre and leads out onto mile zero and the scenic Dallas Road with views to the Olympic Mountains. I try to always visit here when the Camas lilies are in bloom.
ABKHAZI GARDEN
One of the very easy to find gardens and another historic gem, this is a small romantic garden on Fairfield Road was built because of a love story between the Prince Abkhazi and his wife Peggy. It is packed with choice plants set in a beautiful location. Buy the book at the gift shop and read the story of this charming garden. There is a most delightful tea shop with a patio overlooking the garden and views to the Strait of Juan de Fuca.
GLENDALE GARDENS
Known as the Horticultural Center of the Pacific Northwest, Glendale Gardens is located off Quayle road and the Old Saanich Road.
I’ve watched this garden grow and develop since I’ve been coming to Victoria and it is without exception a must see for any keen plants person.
The actual garden is only six acres. There are 28 different areas and the Doris Page Winter Garden is brilliant with a marvellous collection of hellebore and the best winter heather collection anywhere. There is a delightful Japanese garden adhering to the Japanese design and yet it is brilliantly situated in the middle of our great Canadian cedar trees.
There are always plants for sale and many garden workshops are offered on the weekends. Volunteers run this garden with a panel of renowned Victoria gardeners who offer their expertise — very unusual plants here and also well labelled.
I enjoy this garden in winter and summer and if I lived in Victoria I would be a weekly volunteer.