Finnerty Gardens
 | Template:Wikify is deprecated. Please use a more specific cleanup template as listed in the documentation. |
Finnerty Garden is a Canadian renowned woodland garden located on and maintained by the University of Victoria in Victoria, British Columbia. It's biggest feature is the sizeable collection of rhododendrons artfully placed throughout the 6.5 acre site. There are 500 variations of rhododendrons and rhododendron hybrids on the grounds in addition to 1,600 trees and shrubs, mostly of native varieties. There are numerous paths and benches throughout the garden winding through and around three ponds located on the site.
History
Finnerty Gardens was born in 1974 when Mrs. Jean Simpson of Cowichan lake passed away and left her and her husband's 54 year old rhododendron collection to the University. It was at the time the largest collection in British Columbia and was soon transported to the University. The original site was 1.5 acres in size and maintained by many local plant enthusiasts know as the Friends of the University Gardens. As the gardens grew, dozens of nurseries and private owners began to donate plants to be planted in the gardens and soon after, an additional 5 acres was opened up to planting. In 1988 the gardeners decided to undergo a major transplant due to the poor soil conditions in the original section of the gardens. In September of that year over 300 plants were moved. Since then, Finnerty Gardens has continued to expand and thrive still in the hands of the Friends of the University Gardens.
Recent Issues
The bulging rabbit population on campus has begun to cause problems to Finnerty Gardens. A five foot rabbit fence has been erected around most of the perimeter but because complete closure of the gardens is not possible due both to the paths in and out and rabbit's tunnelling abilities, the University has been considering a cull.
The particularly strong storms that occurred in late November and early December in 2006 took their toll on the gardens, knocking down many older trees, blocking paths, and breaking some of the older plants. The reconstruction efforts continue.