Botanical Beauty
Are you looking for a place to go for a lovely evening stroll? Check out The Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs in northwest Calgary. Tucked behind the cinderblock sound barrier on the south side of Crowchild Trail, lies 20 acres of botanical gardens and an urban forest. Technically, in a City of Calgary Park, the gardens and pathways are open to the public, free of charge.
Map
The main entrance and parking lot are near the baseball diamond (#15). However, there is also a small alley-way parking lot near the Half Moon Garden (#1). In addition, a kiosk at the main entrance provides a map of the gardens, information on what’s in bloom and other events at the park.
Shakespeare Garden
This Shakespeare Garden is unique in that it is the only one in Western Canada.
Shakespeare wrote much about plants and you can see his many quotes throughout this garden.
History
In 2002, the BP BirthPlace Forest was created in the community of Silver Springs. Seven thousand trees were planted to commemorate babies born that year in Calgary. If you’d like to learn more about the BirthPlace Forest click here.
In 2007, two wonderful things happened. First, the Oval Garden was created alongside the BirthPlace Forest. Second, William Morf, a resident with a property that backed onto the noise barrier, had an idea. Why not develop a 100ft garden along the concrete wall? The seed was planted.
Today, the walled garden now spans 1,300 feet and is only one of 16 other specialty gardens within the park. Stroll in comfort along the 1.5 kilometres of spongy mulch-lined pathways.
Vision: “A destination park and botanical gardens featuring plants that grow in Calgary’s unique climate.”
All Hail the Keepers of the Gardens
Volunteers are the backbone and blood of this stunning place. They can be found working tirelessly amongst the plants at any given hour of the day. To further their awesomeness, they are happy to answer questions and even have scheduled talks throughout the summer.
Fun Fact: Total area of cultivated gardens is 39,735 square feet.
Fun Fact: Volunteers laid 8000 donated bricks and purchased 1,000 more to complete the Labyrinth which is the largest outdoor one of its kind in Canada.
Whether you are new to gardening or a seasoned pro, the Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs website has a wealth of information about the plants growing in the park. You can find more information here.
As you may have noticed, we enjoy close-up photos of flowers! We encourage you to visit the many different gardens including the Shade Garden, the Fruit Grove and the LoH20 Garden. As mentioned, there are 17 to see!
Rose Garden
The goal of the Botanical Rose Group is to “collect and preserve hearty and Canadian Heritage roses”. If roses are your thing, you must see the information available on their website.
Fun Fact: It takes 10 truckloads or 20,000 pounds of mulch each year to maintain the trails throughout the BirthPlace Forest and botanical gardens.
Pay it Forward
For over 10 years these gardens have been designed, developed, and maintained by a volunteer group. The Silver Springs Botanical Gardens Society is a registered charity.
If you would like to volunteer in the gardens, please contact them at info@bgss.ca or through their website.
For more information on how to donate, click here.
Additionally, there are sponsorship options! Check out this page on their website.
There are several options to pay it forward if you are so inclined.
Many of the pictures here are from our visit in mid-July. We had to return to see how the sunflower garden looked in full bloom. I can promise you; that the bees were very happy!
To discover a vibrant spot in the city where nature and beauty thrive is a gift. Until next time…