A Visit to Butchart Gardens
In early June We had the pleasure of a trip to Canada that included some time in the city of Victoria on Vancouver Island B.C.
Just north of the city are the world renound Butchart Gardens.
Not all that large in area but really well designed and excellently presented and maintained.
The gardens feature a number of themed areas and features and there are some scenes that open out as you make your way through the gardens that really do take your breath away. The view at the entry of the sunken “quarry” garden is one such spot as is the huge dancing fountain at the extreme bottom of the garden.
A modern addition is a whimsical Carousel housed in a modern round building of timber and glass walls and an earth roof.
The rose garden was just cranking up (we were there in early spring) but the Japanese garden was sheer magic. With Victoria’s high rainfall and moderate temperate climate they are able to maintain a beautiful carpet of green moss in this garden which sets of the fallen flowers of Rhododendrons and the red foliage of the Japanese Maples so well that everyone in our group was oo-ing and ahh-ing. The setting of this garden was also well planned. You wander down in to it, are lead around a twining series of paths and then you leave by climbing a set of steps out of it, really emphasizing the feeling that you have just been in a very special place!
Another special garden I visited in Canada was the Van Dusen Botanic Gardens in Vancouver City. I’ll post some images soon.
posted by Evan Prentice - 2010-07-06