Visitors to Assiniboine Park will get the chance to explore six unique new gardens this July.
The outdoor phase of The Leaf — Canada’s Diversity Gardens will take up around 30 acres in the southeast corner of the park, as part of the final major phase of the park’s redevelopment.
The Assiniboine Park Conservancy said a team of horticulturalists began laying more than 10,000 square feet of sod and planting the gardens last year, with over 36,000 perennials, grasses, shrubs and trees already in the ground and a further 2,000 to be planted in 2021.
“It will be all hands on deck over the coming weeks to get the outdoor Gardens at The Leaf
ready for the opening in July,” said the conservancy’s senior horticulture director, Gerald Dieleman.
“This is just the beginning, and the gardens will be a work in progress. Over the weeks, months and years to come, the gardens will evolve as they mature and change with the seasons, encouraging people to return and relish their beauty over and over again.”
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The six new gardens include an Indigenous Peoples garden, a kitchen garden, a sensory garden, a performance garden, a seasonal garden and “The Grove.”
“The opening of these new gardens will return a significant and beautifully revitalized area of
Assiniboine Park to our community for year-round enjoyment,” said conservancy president and CEO Margaret Redmond.
“Over the past year, we have been reminded of the value of public parks and greenspace and how important these places are to our health and well-being.”
More information about the gardens, which formally open July 9, will be released at a later date.