Summer Garden Insights 2026

By Brian Nixon, Horticultural Director

Spectacular summer flowers are set to steal the show at Gardens this upcoming season. There’s something incredible about watching these gems mature from small, tender plantings into a lush, vibrant sanctuary that feels as though it has been there forever. After three full weeks of steady planting, we will finally get to stand back and enjoy the garden in all its summer glory. Summer is one of my favourite seasons, a time when we can appreciate the floral display ablaze with colour, texture, design, and a wide variety of plant material. It also draws folks, who aren’t particularly keen on horticulture, closer to plants, I promise.

Getting to this point involves creative design and planning, as well as incredibly hard work from our talented gardening staff. First off, the summer annuals are all started from seed or grown as rooting cuttings starting early in the new year. After the seeds have been sown and the plugs have been potted, the specialists in our greenhouses move on to their next task: growing these summer plants until they are ready to be transplanted into the flower beds. After months of tender care in the greenhouses, the plants are transplanted into nutrient-rich flower beds, creating the masterpieces that welcome visitors throughout the summer season. During this labour-intensive process, everyone in the gardening department helps out however they can, to minimize the workload on any one crew. Seeing the entire gardening department come together to accomplish a common goal truly brings me joy and makes me appreciate the beauty of The Gardens even more.

There is no question that summer annuals and perennials capture the most attention in the gardens during the summer, but many other important players also play a crucial role in the success of the summer display. The Rose Garden is unquestionably the most colourful garden and the first that comes to mind. There are thousands and thousands of roses that bloom at similar times (2500 to be exact), creating a magnificent show that can be seen from afar. The meticulously planted delphiniums throughout this garden contrast perfectly with the roses, all planted purposefully along the outer edge of the hybrid tea roses. I have plenty of preferred photo ops in The Gardens, but my favourite is the view looking down at the archway when the climbing roses are all blooming. This is a spectacular view, as the colourful roses growing up the archway are gracefully framed by emerald green Buxus sempervirens hedges on either side. If you love roses, I suggest visiting between late-June and early September, as this is the peak blooming time for these summer gems.  

After the fragrant and eye-catching roses comes the Japanese Garden, which is only steps away from the Rose Garden. A completely different experience from the Rose Garden, the Japanese Garden is a garden of peace, tranquillity, and calm. The Japanese Garden was created 120 years ago by Jennie Butchart in collaboration with Isaburo Kishida. This was the first of the formal gardens, and was thoughtfully designed by Jennie Butchart. We work hard to maintain this garden to replicate the way Jennie Butchart intended it to look. The Japanese Garden is a cool contrast from the other gardens here, a perfect place to enjoy the serenity that exists in this magnificent oasis.

While summer annuals, shrubs, and perennials typically take center stage, we encourage you to take in our vast tree collection. Our tree collection is extensive and comprises species from all around the world, collected over the last 122 years. The trees provide the landscape with unique character, height, and texture, but another valuable quality they add in the summer is shade. Much of our landscape is designed around the trees. These trees often provide shade for the surrounding gardens, and if they are lost, it can create challenges for the plants. You can easily replace bedding plants, shrubs and small trees, but losing a mature tree can take decades to establish. Our gardening team is always working on succession planning, preparing well in advance for situations like this by planting new specimens in locations where we know a mature tree is nearing the end of its life. Although not the largest, one of my personal favourites is the Laburnum (Golden chain tree) bower which welcomes visitors as they arrive from our main visitor parking lot. Laburnum trees are grown on arches along the main entrance to The Gardens, with beautiful yellow flowers cascading down like a floral waterfall. This is a spectacular sight, especially if you time it right; they typically flower in late June, but depending on the weather, this can vary. The Laburnum has been trained to grow over the arches in order to achieve this horticultural masterpiece.

I welcome you to join us this summer and experience just how breathtaking The Gardens are as they transition through the season. A visit here is an unforgettable experience that you will not find anywhere else in the world. Visiting from mid-June to mid-September is a fantastic time, with evening entertainment starting in July and continuing through early September.