Visiting UBC's Gardens in Vancouver, B.C.

by Keith and Heather Nicol

The Nitobe Gardens is well worth seeing

    On Friday, May 9 we decided to see 2 well known gardens at the University of British Columbia. We were joined by our daughter Kristie and we started with the Nitobe Garden which is one of the best traditional Japanese gardens in North America. The cherry trees were in bloom and be sure to pick up a guide to the garden which suggests various interpretations for the why the garden is laid out the way it is. The garden may be envisioned to span a day, a year or a lifetime and the waterfalls, bridges and stone lanterns all have special meaning. After enjoying the Nitobe Gardens we then decided to head to the UBC Botanical Gardens which was about a 20 minute walk away.  At the UBC Botanical Gardens, many rhododendrons were still in bloom and we especially enjoyed the physic garden which showcase traditional medicine plants from medieval Europe. We also recommend doing the elevated canopy walkway which is reaches heights of 18 meters above the forest floor. You can easily spend a several hours visiting these 2 gardens on a sunny spring or summer day.For more information see: http://www.botanicalgarden.ubc.ca/ which has information on both gardens.

The UBC Botanical Gardens has different highlights

Don't miss the canopy walkway