by Keith and Heather Nicol
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The Gardens include 3 small ponds |
The next day
Friday May 15 we decided to see another of Victoria’s gardens and we were again
joined by Keith’s brother Bruce and his wife Mary Ellen. The Abkhazi Garden is located in downtown
Victoria on a large residential lot and initially was created by Peggy and
Nicholas Abkhazi in the late 1940’s. They first met in Paris in the 1920’s and
although separated by war they became reacquainted in New York and moved to
Victoria and were married in 1946. They built a bungalow on top of a small
rocky hill and proceeded to create a fascinating garden on their 1 acre
property. The property had large native Garry oaks and glacially carved rock
which defined the basic structure of the garden.
Today the house and grounds are part of The
Land Conservancy which is designed to preserve the heritage house and gardens. The
house has been transformed into a stylish tea house and gift shop and we opted
for the afternoon tea to be served on the sunny patio. After a delicious
sampling of small sandwiches, scones, tarts and tea we set out to explore the
gardens.
At this time of year the rhododendron
woodland garden was very colourful and well worth seeing on its own.
Some of the rhododendron plants are very large
and close to 50 years old! There is also a small summerhouse at the edge of
property and many other short trails that give different views of both the
garden and surrounding landscape. If you like gardens and classic English tea
then you can’t go wrong with a visit to the Abkhazi Garden. For more
information on the Tea House see: www.abkhaziteahouse.com
www.abkhaziteahouse.com and for more information on the garden see:
http://blog.conservancy.bc.ca/properties/vancouver-island-region/abkhazi-garden/
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We enjoyed afternoon tea on the patio |
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Heather walking past one of the large rhododendrons |
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