| The Butchart Gardens are
at Brentwood Bay about 20km north of Victoria. They cover 55 acres and are
maintained by 50 full time gardeners and more part time ones. They were
started in 1904 by Jennie Butchart in a limestone quarry worked out by her
husband's cement company. |  |
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Today they have over a million visitors a year from all over the world. They
are set up for this with guides in over 20 different languages. |
| The snail fountain is one
of many. Water is the key to having a successful year round garden. |  |
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Perhaps the most spectacular part is the sunken garden in the old limestone
quarry. The coach trips from the cruise ships allow you 1.5 hours in the
gardens. We arrived early before the sun was fully up and while it was
quieter. |
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The colour mix of the trees is amazing and shows real forethought in the
original planting. However many of the plants here prefer acid soils. We
were hoping to see what could be done on limestone as we have at home. The
answer seems to be to import tons of soil. |
| It all looks very
manicured and we found no weeds. Now where can we find some more
gardeners... |  |
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In the centre of the sunken garden is a limestone bluff from which you can
look down on the gardens. There is a preferred route and most people walk
round the same way. |
| At the end of the sunken
garden is the Ross fountain designed and installed by the Butcharts'
grandson. This gives a constantly changing pattern and was brilliantly lit
by a beam of sunlight while we were there. |  |
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We just loved the colour mix of the leaves on the trees. Who needs
flowers.... |
| There are a few statues
and I spotted this one (long zoom shot) - very artistic pose. |  |
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There are a number of these wire and moss creations scattered around the
gardens. This is one of a pair on a wall. It is about 2ft long. |
| Not actually part of the
display gardens, these are some of the nursery beds where over a million
plants are grown each year for planting out. The water is used for
irrigation and the fountain is to keep it aerated. |  |
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You are never far from a totem pole in north west America. |
| A beautiful hydrangea
with the added bonus of a small green frog sunning itself. |  |
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The dahlia display was magnificent. This is for our friends who love
dahlias. |
| This sequoia was planted
as a seedling in 1934. They grow about a foot each year. |  |
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Close-up of a dahlia. |
| Another separate garden
is the rose garden. Sadly there are few roses flowering in it at this time
of year. |  |
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I think this is a lily. It was just a striking flower in the sunshine. |
| The garden has its own
cove with little boats which in the summer give tours around the cove to see
the old cement works. The view is framed through a hole in a fir hedge. |  |
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