Researching Historic Gardens and Landscapes

Historic Gardens and Landscapes Links

How did past generations garden? How did they view their landscapes? Detailed information on what still exists or what no longer remains is required to write the story of a site. Hopefully, the links provided here will help researchers do this.

Henry Harris Groff, 1852-1933, hybridist

January 14, 2022

One of Canada’s early hybridists who concentrated solely on flowering plants was Henry H. Groff of Simcoe, Ontario. At various times in his career he was called “‘a wizard of horticulture,” “the banker-florist,” and “the Luther Burbank of Ontario.” His horticultural fame stemmed from the improvement and hybridizing of one plant – the gladiolus.” Basically he … More Henry Harris Groff, 1852-1933, hybridist

Street Tree Planting in Canada, pre-1930

September 13, 2021

One of the earliest civic beautification projects in Canada was street tree planting, which was also allied with the City Beautiful movement and with the growing popularity of boulevarding – creating strips of lawn and trees and sometimes flower beds alongside or down the centre of city streets. Winnipeg, Canada, led the way. It began … More Street Tree Planting in Canada, pre-1930

The Burdens of the Early 20th Century Canadian Gardener

March 25, 2021

The early twentieth-century Canadian garden was not created solely for aesthetic reasons. A reforming zeal, evident throughout society in the actions of prohibitionists, suffragettes, evangelists and others, provided the impetus for our first great movement to improve our surroundings, that is, to garden, Yet, Canadians in the early 1900s were not allowed to just putter … More The Burdens of the Early 20th Century Canadian Gardener

What do Landscapes Tell Us About Our Culture: L. Sando, TED talk.