Butchart Gardens in Brentwood Bay’s former quarry
Published on 08/14/2026 at 14:18 | Editorial responsibility: Rafael MĂĽller, Editor-in-Chief AD HOC NEWS
On the Saanich Peninsula north of Victoria in British Columbia, Butchart Gardens spreads across a former limestone quarry above Tod Inlet. The gardens began in 1904 when Jennie and Robert Pim Butchart established their estate and cement works on this site, and they grew over the early twentieth century into a network of themed gardens that later gained recognition as a National Historic Site of Canada in 2004.
From limestone quarry to landscaped Sunken Garden
The earliest phase of Butchart Gardens is closely tied to cement production, which drew on limestone deposits beside the family home on the peninsula overlooking Tod Inlet. As the rock was removed, a steep-sided quarry remained, and from 1904 Jennie Butchart began turning that industrial void into a landscaped space, laying out pathways, planting shrubs and trees on the exposed faces and building up deep flower beds where stone once stood.Between 1906 and 1929 the Butcharts expanded the gardens to incorporate this reclaimed area, and by 1921 the Sunken Garden was in place as a central feature of the estate.The Sunken Garden occupies the former quarry and was completed in 1921
Standing on the higher ground that frames the Sunken Garden, visitors look down into a basin of lawns, paths and densely planted borders edged by the quarry walls. Sloping paths descend into this space, leading between shrubs, seasonal plantings and mature trees that now soften the rock faces. In the distance, water jets rise from the Ross Fountain, which was installed in 1964 as part of the gardens’ mid-twentieth-century development and adds a strong vertical accent to the reclaimed quarry floor.The Ross Fountain was installed in 1964
Japanese, Italian and Rose Gardens around the estate
Beyond the Sunken Garden, Butchart Gardens is arranged as several distinct formal gardens, each with its own character yet linked by paths and planting. In 1906 Jennie Butchart laid out a Japanese Garden on the seaside section of the property and later worked with Japanese landscaper Isaburo Kishida, creating an enclosed world of maples, evergreen shrubs and water that runs down towards Butchart Cove and the waters of Brentwood Bay.The Japanese Garden was designed in 1906 with Isaburo Kishida Paths thread through groves of trees, across small bridges and past features such as a Shinto-style gate, with occasional openings that give views out to the inlet.
Closer to the main house, a former tennis court became the Italian Garden in the 1920s, laid out with formal beds, decorative paving and a central water element.The Italian Garden on the former tennis court was completed in 1926 Nearby, the Rose Garden was added during the same period and later refined; by 1929 landscape architects working with the Butchart family had helped shape its structure, arranging arches, beds and borders around a network of paths.The Rose Garden was designed in 1929 In summer this part of the estate becomes a dense display of different rose varieties, with plants trained over structures as well as planted in beds.
A family-run National Historic Site on the Saanich Peninsula
Butchart Gardens remains closely associated with the Butchart family, who have shaped and managed the landscape through successive generations. In 1939 Jennie and Robert Pim Butchart passed responsibility for the gardens to their grandson Robert Ian Ross on his twenty-first birthday, and he introduced features such as night illuminations in 1953 and the Ross Fountain in 1964.In 1939 the gardens were gifted to Robert Ian Ross Later, in 1977, Christopher Ian Ross, a great grandson, added a regular fireworks show, extending the gardens’ use beyond daytime visits.Fireworks shows were introduced in 1977
The gardens occupy an area of landscaped ground within a larger estate on the Saanich Peninsula, with formal display beds covering several hectares.The designated National Historic Site area is about 5.26 hectares In October 2004 Butchart Gardens was designated a National Historic Site of Canada, marking both its centenary and its significance in Canadian gardening history.The site was designated a National Historic Site in 2004 The layout retains much of Jennie Butchart’s early twentieth-century design, with seasonal planting schemes renewing the displays while preserving the underlying structure of lawns, paths, trees and water features.
Visiting Butchart Gardens: what travellers from Western Europe should know
- Butchart Gardens lies on the Saanich Peninsula north of Victoria in British Columbia, close to Brentwood Bay and Tod Inlet, and is reached by road from Victoria and other Vancouver Island communities.
- The grounds include sloping paths, stairways and changes in level, especially around the Sunken Garden, where routes descend from higher viewpoints down to the former quarry floor.
- The official language is English and the currency is the Canadian dollar.
- Entry requirements depend on your nationality; UK travellers can check the FCDO travel advice at gov.uk/foreign-travel-advice, Irish travellers the Department of Foreign Affairs at ireland.ie.
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Frequently asked questions about Butchart Gardens
Where is Butchart Gardens located?
Butchart Gardens is on the Saanich Peninsula near Brentwood Bay in British Columbia, Canada, north of Victoria and close to Tod Inlet.
What can visitors expect during a visit?
Visitors walk through a sequence of formal gardens, including the Sunken Garden, Japanese Garden, Italian Garden and Rose Garden, linked by paths, lawns and water features.
What makes Butchart Gardens distinctive?
The combination of a reclaimed limestone quarry landscape, early twentieth-century garden design and continuing family stewardship gives Butchart Gardens a strongly defined character within Canadian garden history.
