The Heritage Gardens at Dalnavert Museum
By Lorraine Endler, Master Gardener, and
Barbara McEwen, Dalnavert Museum Garden Volunteer
Just south of Broadway at 61 Carlton Street stands Dalnavert Museum. This Victorian-style mansion was built in 1895 as the home of Sir Hugh John Macdonald and his family. Sir Hugh was the son of Sir John A. Macdonald, Canada’s first Prime Minister. After the death of Sir Hugh in 1929, Lady Macdonald moved to a smaller residence. Ownership of the house then transferred between various parties. After undergoing a full restoration, Dalnavert, also known as MacDonald House, opened as a museum in June 1974 and was designated a National Historic Site of Canada in 1990. This year, Dalnavert Museum is celebrating its 50th anniversary as a museum.
Complimenting this beautiful historical landmark are its heritage gardens. The gardens originally bordered Dalnavert. They were later enlarged after the purchase of a neighboring building was made to accommodate the construction of the Visitor’s Center built during 2004-2005. The large lawn to the south of Dalnavert Museum houses the underground geothermal pipes which heat and cool the new center. This expansive area with its garden borders is an enchanting location for many of the events hosted at Dalnavert.
Volunteers have always been part of the Dalnavert heritage gardens and in 2008 those volunteers began to plan the overall space. To assist in organizing their plan, each individual garden was assigned a name of a MacDonald family member. The plant selections for each garden are intended to reflect the family member’s personality.
Today the gardens are kept by a team of volunteers who come together weekly to maintain their beauty. Each spring, the volunteers meet to discuss plans for the upcoming year and document the proposed activities and any suggested changes to be made to the gardens. Part of the garden team’s process when choosing plantings for the gardens is to research historical seed catalogues, books, and online resources to assist in selecting period-appropriate plantings or a present-day equivalent.
Daisy’s Garden, named after Sir Hugh John Macdonald’s daughter, is located along the north side of the house. The plantings selected for this garden depict this young woman’s energetic and outgoing personality. Visitors will enjoy the feathery clusters of small pink flowers on the queen of the prairie (Filipendula rubra) and the showy pink June and July blooms of the wild rose (Rosa). Also found in Daisy’s Garden is the painted daisy (Tanacetum coccineum), a symbol of innocence in the Victorian era. A cement urn adorns this garden, and its décor is changed with the seasons. Adjacent to Daisy’s Garden, along the entry of the Visitor’s Center, are several stunning peony cultivars dating back prior to World War I.
Photo:Barbara McEwen | Dalnavert Museum
Lady Macdonald enjoyed entertaining her friends with afternoon tea on the home’s beautiful wrap-around veranda. Plantings in Lady Macdonald’s Garden would appeal to a lady of the 19th century with their fragrant blooms and soft colour palette. This garden showcases the stunning peony (Paeonia officinalis) ‘Rosea Plena’. This variety has large double pink ruffled fragrant blooms, an excellent addition to cut arrangements. The lavender colours of the peony’s neighbouring dame’s rocket (Hesperis matronalis) and catmint (Nepeta cv) together paint a beautiful picture. Along the edge of the garden is lady’s mantle (Alchemilla mollis) with its large, scalloped leaves that glisten with water beads after a rain.
Sir Hugh’s Garden begins beneath his study’s window and sweeps along the home’s south side past the solarium and dining room windows. The use of bright colourful plants in this garden reflects Sir Hugh’s strong persona. The eye-catching orange oriental poppies (Papaver orientale) offer a colourful punch to the garden in the early summer. The rudbeckia (Rudbeckia cv) is an ode to Sir Hugh’s time as a magistrate in Winnipeg. In the Victorian language of flowers, the rudbeckia represented justice.
Photo: Lorraine Endler
The loss of two fifty-foot elm trees to disease opened a space for the Cutting Garden. This garden is located close to the kitchen. According to the Manitoba Historical Society Archives, Lady Macdonald “would have elaborate arrangements of flowers for her gatherings.” The Cutting Garden has a wonderful selection of herbs and flowers used for the fresh floral arrangements which today adorn the rooms of Dalnavert Museum. Recely, a historic wrought-iron fence piece was added to the garden as the perfect trellis for the fragrant sweet peas (Lathyrus odorous).
Photo: Courtesy of Friends of Dalnavert Museum
Jack’s Garden was named after Sir Hugh John Macdonald’s youngest child. This garden is also referred to as the Children’s Garden. Plantings in this garden welcome birds, bees, and butterflies. The plants are meant to engage the young visitors to Dalnavert Museum. There is a playful component in this garden with a scarlet runner bean (phaselous coccineus) trellis creating a hidden child’s space and whimsical birdhouses. The lamb’s ear (Stachys cv), seed pods on the false indigo (Baptisia australis), hens and chicks (Sempervivum cv), and snapdragons (Antirrhinum majus) are wonderful jumping-off points for storytelling with the Museum’s young guests.
Photo: Lorraine Endler
The heritage gardens are forever changing. They offer past guests the opportunity to enjoy new beauty during their next visit. The team of volunteers continues to maintain the heritage gardens for the enjoyment of the public and to offer a beautiful backdrop for events and programs hosted at Dalnavert Museum.
To learn more about Sir Hugh MacDonald, Dalnavert Museum, and the Visitors’ Centre and to view the upcoming events calendar, please visit https://www.friendsofdalnavert.ca.