I’m tardy… again. Actually I’m procrastinating because I’m not sure what to say. I’ve taken thousands (it might even be tens of thousands) of photos of the Public Gardens in the last five years, and I’m not sure that you haven’t seen them all before. I wrestle with the fact that I think that a relevant blog has to be informative as well as show pretty pictures. So I set high standards for myself, then I think I can’t meet them, then I procrastinate.
I vow to post the last of the leafy photos I took of the Gardens in the last couple weeks.
As I open the website which is home to my blog I am greeted with a photo of my beloved second home… Mallorca. The photo comes from a blog by an intrepid traveller and wonderful photographer, whom I met on one of my tours of the Gardens earlier this summer. I mentioned that I had a blog, he mentioned that he did too and now we follow each other.
Scott travels all over the world pursuing his “Masters degree in world travel” and captivating his audience by sharing wonderful photos and useful information on the places he visits under the moniker of Traveling barracuda . I get great pleasure reading his posts.
I think about this for a while and realize that there are people who can’t come to the Gardens personally, or who haven’t ever come and are trying to decide whether they should, or people who one day in the future (maybe far into the future) will be looking for something concerning the Gardens. If my posts can help any one of these people find something they were searching for, either through a photo or from something I have written, then it has been worth the effort.
Thank you Scott!
The sun dapples through one of my favourite parts of the Gardens in fall. The wooded area near the Grotto was still glorious a couple of weeks ago.
An optical illusion is created by the reflection of an Acer rubrum (Red Maple), on the water below an Acer platanoides (Norway maple).
Grown mainly for its foliage (its pink pea-like flowers aren’t abundant), the Cercis canadensis ‘Forest Pansy’ (Eastern Redbud) lines up it’s heart-shaped leaves.
The mottled leaves of the Acer pseudoplatanus f. aureovariegatum (Variegated Sycamore Maple). Acers (Maples) and Quercus (Oaks) are some of the last trees to put on their fall display.
A more ‘unkempt’ but still lovely view of the bandstand.
The iridescent necks of the sleeping pigeons looked like colourful flowers when their heads were tucked in. There were a baker’s dozen basking in the sun.
Though there were the occasional burst of orange, most of the leaves were gone around the Gardens last week with the exception of the quadrant around the main gates.
There are several varieties of Acer palmatums (Japanese Maples) around the upper bridge which put on quite a display in the first week of November.
One of the showiest Maples around. This Acer griseum (Paperbark Maple) by the ladies washroom has stunning leaves in fall and peeling red bark all year-long. It’s worth a visit.
Two days before Remembrance day and the roses are still in bloom.
The Public Gardens have many monuments commemorating veterans.
There are commemorative plaques (on the main gates and the upper bridge), dedicated trees (an Ulmus glabra ‘Camperdownii’/ Camperdown Elm by the Soldiers fountain and a Platunus x acerifolia/ London Planetree near the Grotto), as well as the often visited Soldiers’ fountain by the magnificent Fagus sylvatica ‘Pendula’ (Weeping European Beech).
This is a place of remembrance, for those who served and died, for the golden childhood years of many Haligonians, for loves begun, and loved ones lost.
In this peaceful, reflective place, we never forget.
The Gardens will be closing for the season on Friday, November 29 at dusk. After this date, it will be open during the weekdays, weather pending, between 9 AM-2 PM. If the gates are open… so are the Gardens.
Don’t forget to join us at Horticultural Hall on December 5 between 5-7 PM to celebrate the Holidays with the Friends and staff of the Gardens. This event is a perennial favourite.
All copy and images copyright © Serena Graham-Dwyer, 2013. If you wish to use any part or whole of an image, in any manner, please contact us.
Along the Gardens path... 
Don’t ever think your Blog is boring, it’s an inspiration to anybody that follows you.
It’s knowledgable and artful, the presentation and photography are superp, simply delightful.
The Gardens couldn’t have a better or more knowledgable person representing them, and I am certain, that anybody that has a chance to see your Blog is hoping that one day they have a chance to visit them in person. Thank you for your dedication.