Butchart Gardens in Victoria BC

Butchart Gardens Web Site can help you plan your visit. While the gardens are beautiful all year there is something extra special about spring time in my opinion. The gardens burst with colorful tulips and daffodills, and many of the trees have lovely spring blossoms. You can also see lovely rhododendrons, magnolia trees and dogwood, which is the provincial flower.

In addition the city of Victoria is especially beautiful from March to May.

Because of the mild climate the gardens can be enjoyed all year. Snow is rare and when we do get it generally the snow is gone in a day or two.

Robert Pim Butchart (1856-1943) began manufacturing Portland cement in 1888 in Ontario, Canada. He and his wife Jennie Butchart (1866-1950) came to Vancouver Island because of rich limestone deposits necessary for cement production.

In 1904, they established their home near his quarry on Tod Inlet at the Saanich Peninsula, a few miles from Victoria BC.

In 1906, Jennie created a Japanese garden there with the help of designer Isaburo Kishida. In 1909, when the quarry was exhausted, Jennie decided to turn it into a sunken garden, which was completed in 1921. They named their home "Benvenuto" (which means "welcome" in Italian), and started to invite guests to their gardens. In 1926, they replaced their tennis courts with an Italian garden and in 1929 they replaced their kitchen vegetable garden with a rose garden.

In 1939, the Butcharts gave the Gardens to their grandson Ian Ross (1918-1997) on his 21st birthday. He remained involved in the operation and promotion of the gardens until his death 58 years later.

In 1953, miles of underground wiring was laid to provide illumination at night time, to celebrate the 50th anniversary of The Gardens. In 1964, Ross Fountain was installed in the lower reservoir to celebrate the 60th anniversary. In 2004, two 30-foot totem poles were installed to mark the 100th anniversary, and The Gardens were designated as a national historic site.

Ownership of the Gardens remains within the Butchart family; the owner and managing director since 2001 is the Butchart's great-granddaughter Robin-Lee Clarke.

Butchart Gardens has a great online store where you can shop for seeds, souvenirs, home decor, china, tea and coffee, garden sculptures and more.

The seed collection is extensive, and includes flowers that attract butterflies or hummingbirds, drought resistant flowers, special mixes and more.

The online store is available from their web site listed below.

The hand carved wooden carousel is coming in the summer of 2009. The Rose Carousel will be housed within the Children's Pavilion which has a large dome, a full-fronted glass façade and a room for children's parties.

The Rose Carousel, crafted by Brass Ring Entertainment of Sun Valley, California will be unique to Vancouver Island. The menagerie carousel includes animals such as bears, horses, ostriches, and zebras and mirrors the world from which Butchart draws its visitors. Their designs have been hand picked by The Gardens' owner with two chariots to accommodate disabled persons. The carvings are being done by some of the few remaining carvers of carousel art. and each animal carved takes over a year to complete.

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