Monday, May 23, 2011

The Gardens at St. James Park

The Gardens at St. James Park in downtown Toronto looked absolutely beautiful this weekend. I took advantage of a break in the rain to walk by and take a peek. The flowers were enough to make me forget all about our cold, soggy spring.

It seemed to me there were tulips by the thousands. The gardens are modest in size but appear expansive, largely because only one tulip type is featured. Everywhere my eyes landed, there were more and more tulips. A great effect.

The featured tulips were deep pink with a white-edged petal. Remarkably there didn't appear to be any squirrel damage.

Different varieties of tulips were planted outside the main beds including this beautiful selection featuring dramatic curves in a pink blush. There was also a deep shade bed which appeared to be a work in progress and two large beds that were more naturalistic in style but I could barely tear myself away from the main show.

The gardens are right beside St. James Cathedral which is a very impressive structure for those whose interests lean more to architecture and history.

I'm not sure if the city or a garden club plants and looks after these gardens. Whoever is responsible deserves a great big thank you. I'll be sure to visit this park again in summer to see what's growing. If it's even half as lovely as the tulip display it will be well worth the visit. If you ever find yourself at King and Church give yourself a few minutes to enjoy this beautiful space.

3 comments:

Nutty Gnome said...

I just love the tulip forest ...and I'm not normally that fussed on tulips!
Your post on native flowers was great too and gave me some good ideas for a shady area in my garden that I want to develop next year....!

Buyessays said...

Entirely cool how lip service impacts the parks too. I'd be intrigued to perceive how predominant man-made parks are at St. James Park. I like saw this in a billboard, It looks really amazing. See here, if need to any detail about my website.

Karen Millyard said...

What a beautiful photograph! Would you be willing for me to use it in publicity for my upcoming Jane Austen Weekend? We're starting off with a tour of the bell tower and cathedral, then we'll go for a stroll in the lovely park in our Regency finery, so it would be perfect to have this shot. Only with your permission, however, it goes without saying.

Karen Millyard, Jane Austen Dancing