I finally got to the Royal Botanical Garden's newly renovated Rock Garden yesterday on a beautiful November day with the sun lowering in the afternoon sky.
It took a few years, and quite a bit of money to renovate the gardens. It boasts a grand modern entrance building, and accessible walkways down to the rock garden. It is significantly revamped. As I looked at various areas, I could see how different it is now. Even with the mature trees still in their places, the renovation is profound.
The water was emptied from the ponds so the full effect is missing in the late fall. Still the autumn colours are showing in the Japanese maples, dogwoods, viburnums and the grasses.
The landscape architect firm was Janet Rosenberg Studio. I looked for reviews by the professional trade to see what the verdict is. I found one article in Canadian Architecture covering the basic overview of what was accomplished. Nothing else so far. I wanted to know if the result has elevated the rock garden to star status. A sunken garden has the potential to be pure magic.
So it was great to see the re-do of the ponds and paths as they were in poor shape. The new ponds and waterways are the major features and they are empty now, so I may have to wait till spring to get the full effect of the fountains, waterfalls and bridges. It might be possible to capture some snow images - I checked to see if the Rock Garden is open in winter and daily hours are posted, so we'll see what happens.
Join Me! Next Sunday I will be the speaker at the annual meeting of the Lily Society. This is a free event open to the public. And this is one of my favourite topics and activities - finding 'public' gardens within easy reach. I would be so pleased if you can be there.
April 10, 2016 2:00pm - Ontario Regional Lily Society (at the Royal Botanical Gardens, 680 Plains Road West. Burlington, Rooms 1 & 2)
Great Public Gardens in Your Own Backyard
If you live within the Golden Horseshoe and surrounding Toronto area, you can visit more than 30 public gardens within easy driving distance. Some will be new to you and others will be familiar. You'll see them all at their best. Get your schedules out because you'll want to get to these glorious gardens so close to home and easy to visit.
