Victoria Bus Tour 2009

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Early Wednesday morning on May 13, 2009, a full bus of 48 members and guests set out from Courtenay to visit several gardens in the Victoria area. Despite the damp weather, it was an enjoyable trip.

Along the way, the first stop was at the beautiful hillside garden of Alan and Sandy Campbell near Shawnigan Lake. From the road, you looked up tiered rockery to their home. Natural rock outcroppings were the basis for the tiers. Most of us walked up the driveway to the house where Sandy had graciously provided coffee, tea, and goodies. Very nice!

From there, the Bus Tour headed southward to the garden of Moe and Johanna Massa who developed their sanctuary on their 10-acre Sooke property. Moe and Johanna had personalized their garden with figurines and a small chapel.

The tour then headed back to Victoria for a stop at the Blackmores’ garden which was awesome. A pathway led us through rhododendrons, water features, and arbutus trees to their back deck where they served tea and coffee in the gazebo.

The next stop was at Ann and Tom Widdowson’s home in West Saanich. A heritage garden and house with bluebells flowering everywhere.

The final stop of the day was at the home of Ken and Madeleine Webb. We saw from the roadway that the sides of their long driveway were planted with large, mature, and lovely flowering rhododendrons leading to their home. The front yard was elevated above the driveway with plants surrounding their lush, green lawn.

For a complete description of the Victoria Bus Tour 2009, read Nadine Boudreau’s article in the June 2009 issue of the Rhodoteller (our monthly newsletter) which can be found on our website.