2024: Butchart Gardens

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We visited Butchart Gardens the end of July.  I'm going to "interview" Beth about our visit.



Q: Why did you want to visit Butchart Gardens?
A: This time of year flowers were in bloom that we had not seen when visiting earlier in the year. For example the zinnias, the dahlias, the begonias, and the roses.  I also wanted visit later in the day,  after 5pm, as the tour busses have all departed by that time reducing crowd size.  We also timed our visit for Saturday evening as live music and fireworks were scheduled.



"Ketchup and Mustard" rose






Q: Where did you stay for your visit?
A: There is a back cove at Butchart Gardens with 4 mooring balls.  It is located at the base of the Japanese Gardens.  It even has a separate ticket booth.  Boats can stay free for 24 hours, so the moorings are a hot commodity.  They are also limited to boats less than 40 feet in overall length.  As an alternative, if the mooring balls are full, boaters can anchor in Tod Inlet and dinghy to the dock for entrance.  


Boats on the mooring balls must stern tie to control their swing.



I was glad we arrived at a higher tide or I would have struggled to loop the line through the ring.






The dinghy dock which allows boaters to enter the Gardens


Q: What do you enjoy most about the gardens?
A: I have my own favorite flowers that I gravitate towards.  The Sunken Garden and the variety of flowers, colors, and textures is always amazing.  It is also special that you never see a brown leaf or a dead bloom.  It must take an army of gardeners to performance maintenance and you never see them in action.
















Q: How much time did you spend in the park?
A: We entered the park about 5pm, toured the rose garden, the dahlias, the zinnias, etc. till ~ 630pm and then ate in the Blue Poppy Restaurant on site.  There is also a fancy white tablecloth restaurant for which you need a reservation.  You can also take afternoon tea there.  After dinner we enjoyed walking through the sunken gardens with their dramatic spectrum of color.  We also set up lawn chairs on the grass for the fireworks.  We caught the end of the live music and then moved over to occupy our chairs and wait for the fireworks which started at 9:45pm.  It was still twilight at the start of the fireworks show, which was set to music.  It was about a 30 minute show.  We didn't feel the grassy viewing area was too crowded.  By the time it ended, it was dark and the gardens where illuminated with dramatic landscape lights.  After the fireworks, most people headed for the front or main exit.  We had the opportunity to stroll through the illuminated Japanese Garden.  The crowd was thin and mostly composed of other boaters returning to the dinghy dock for the trip back to there boats.  We did notice that Tod Inlet got very full of boats, especially big boats.  Only a portion of the fireworks were aerial, the bulk were ground based and not viewable in the inlet.  So it would be best to enter the park if you want to enjoy the fireworks show.















This fellow played the organ after the conclusion of the fireworks



The entrance to the Japanese Garden







A dragon feature along a stream






Resources












Location: The Butchart Gardens, 800 Benvenuto Ave, Brentwood Bay, BC V8M 1J8, Canada

Comments

  1. AnonymousAugust 4, 2024 at 5:17 PM

    Amazing. Love the flowers. Gardens were beautiful !

    ReplyDelete
  2. AnonymousAugust 9, 2024 at 12:26 PM

    Looks like a beautiful place the gardens and flowers were stunning.

    ReplyDelete

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