In 1912, Jennie Butchart began filling an exhausted quarry with soil brought by horse and cart in British Columbia; the project grew into a garden recognised as a national historic site

What happens when a once-profitable quarry is left with a huge empty pit beside a family estate? For Jennie Butchart, the answer was not to leave it behind.

Instead, she imagined something completely different. The exhausted limestone site on Vancouver Island would become a garden filled with plants, colour and carefully designed landscapes. Turning that idea into reality required tons of topsoil, transported by horse and cart, along with years of work, as per a report by The Butchart Gardens and Horticulture Magazine.

The result was The Butchart Gardens, a place that grew far beyond Jennie’s original transformation of the quarry. More than a century later, the gardens remain family run and are recognised as a National Historic Site of Canada.

How did an old quarry become a garden?

Robert and Jennie Butchart moved from Ontario to Vancouver Island in 1904, where they purchased land on the Saanich Peninsula, about 12 miles north of Victoria. Their original business was cement, and the property contained a rich limestone deposit that supplied their new cement plant.

But the resource did not last forever. The limestone deposits were exhausted by 1909, leaving a huge quarry pit near the Butcharts’ estate, which was called Benvenuto.

Jennie saw an opportunity in the damaged landscape.

Her idea was to turn the quarry into a sunken garden, but creating one was anything but simple. The site needed to be transformed before planting could even begin. Tons of topsoil had to be brought in by horse and cart to create new garden beds, while ivy was carefully placed into the cracks and crevices of the gray quarry walls.

The work continued for years. It ultimately took nine years to complete the Sunken Garden, which remains the largest and one of the most recognisable areas of The Butchart Gardens.

The former industrial landscape had begun taking on a completely different identity.

When did the Butchart Gardens begin to grow?

The Sunken Garden was Jennie’s largest project, but it was not where her interest in gardening began.

Soon after arriving on Vancouver Island, she hired Isaburo Kishida, a Japanese gardener, to help create a formal Japanese-style garden on the family estate. As work on the Sunken Garden progressed, interest in Jennie’s gardens grew.

The Butcharts did not keep the property closed to outsiders. Acquaintances and strangers were welcomed into the gardens, and the family home, Benvenuto, lived up to its name. The Italian word means “welcome,” and visitors were treated accordingly.

Robert and Jennie served tea to people who came to see the gardens, whether they had been invited or not. In 1915 alone, it is reported that 18,000 people visited the gardens and home. There was no admission charge.

Jennie continued developing the property for 35 years.

The family’s former tennis court became the Italian Garden, while the Rose Garden followed, eventually becoming home to 2,500 rose plants.

By the time Robert and Jennie gifted the gardens to their grandson Robert Ian Ross in 1939, the property had already become far more than the original quarry transformation.

How did a family garden become a lasting legacy?

Robert Ian Ross continued shaping the gardens into an international attraction. He introduced outdoor concerts, summer night lighting and winter holiday light displays.

The family tradition continued through later generations. In 1977, great-grandson Christopher began producing weekly fireworks shows during the summer. In 2009, his sister Robin, the current owner of The Gardens, added the Children’s Pavilion and Menagerie Carousel.

The gardens remain family run today.

Their history also includes recognition of Indigenous cultural heritage. Two totem poles were carved in the Classic Coast Salish style by Master Carvers Charles Elliott of the Tsartlip Nation and Doug La Fortune of Tsawout Band. They were dedicated on September 9, 2004, marking the 100th anniversary of The Butchart Gardens while also recognising the cultural heritage provided by Indigenous People.

Today, the gardens cover 55 acres, with remnants of the original cement plant still present among millions of bedding plants representing more than 900 varieties.

The plant displays themselves have become part of the garden’s identity.

Himalayan blue poppies are among the most famous. Jennie was one of a select few to receive seeds gathered in 1924 by botanist and seedsman Frank Kingdon-Ward. The seeds were planted in the Japanese Garden, where the flowers can still be seen during their annual late-spring bloom.

Another historic feature is a pair of arborvitaes planted by Jennie in the Sunken Garden in 1920. Although the original trees eventually had to be replaced, the planting continues to reflect her original design.

Spring also brings approximately 300,000 bulbs across the gardens, including 92 varieties of Narcissus and 191 varieties of Tulipa. Other bulbs include Hyacinthus, Crocus, Scilla and Fritillaria.

Later in the year, dahlias take over sections of the landscape. More than 100 varieties are displayed annually, including densely planted borders along the Concert Lawn.

What began with an exhausted limestone quarry ultimately became a carefully cultivated landscape spanning decades and generations. Jennie Butchart’s decision to see possibility in an abandoned industrial site created a garden that still carries the imprint of her original vision.

The Butchart Gardens is now a National Historic Site of Canada, preserving not only its remarkable gardens but also the story of how one woman transformed a scarred landscape into a place intended to welcome everyone.

FAQs

Who created The Butchart Gardens?
Jennie Butchart envisioned the gardens after the family’s limestone quarry was exhausted.

How large are The Butchart Gardens?
The gardens cover 55 acres today.