Halifax Public Gardens

[Grant Lamontagne]

Given the recent issues described in the other thread, I decided to take some pics to share with everyone here what the Halifax Public Gardens looks like, so you can see how special a place it is.  I apologize that I am not a good enough photographer to accurately share the experience, but even my meager skills can't help but pick up some beauty.

I didn't want this thread to be disaster porn, but there are a few pics of the damaged trees in here.  You can see the burlap wrap on the damaged ones.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

That last one wasn't heavily damaged, but you can see that it didn't escape completely unscathed.

In addition to the people that frequent the park every day, there is a significant amount of wildlife there- including squirrels and many, many little ducks.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

I like ducks.  They are adorable, hilarious, and taste extremely good.   

The Gardens are also home to a number of pigeons and seagulls, which means there also needs to be an abundance of statues, because where else would they poop?   

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[Grant Lamontagne]

There are so many curated gardens in the Gardens (duh!) that there are bees everywhere.  There are some spots where the bumblebees are so plentiful that their buzzing as as loud as a malfunctioning transformer. 

The bees get so full and tired going from flower to flower that they fall asleep in some flowers, with their little bumble butts sticking out.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

There are so many plaques, old photos and historical plates all over the part- some just telling you what each tree is, some dedicating a bench, tree or statue to a person, family or organization that donated or otherwise supported the Gardens.  Some commemorate the visitation of the Royal Family, and some just give directions.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

One of the best parts of the Gardens is this huge, old weeping willow tree.  Whenever it rains you can find people sheltering under it- there is ample room underneath it as it's branches cover a footprint as big as a house.  Two people hugging it's trunk could just barely touch fingertips.

Because we have so many hurricanes here, we don't have a lot of big, old trees, which makes the ones we do have that much more special- and tragic, as this beautiful old tree was one of the ones that was vandalized- and very badly.  I doubt very much it will survive.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

You can see just how much cover these branches give.  It is a favorite spot for many people to shelter from the rain, the hot sun, and even just life.  Megan sheltered under this tree many times, even in adulthood, referring to this tree as an excellent Blanket Fort.

While the loss of any of the trees in this Garden is tragic, the loss of this icon that has touched and sheltered so many is absolutely the greatest loss of all.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

For the most part, the Gardens alternates between trees, singular and in clusters, curated gardens and open green spaces.  Despite being in the heart of the city, and not overly large, it's surprisingly quiet as you walk through- there is enough foliage to block most of the traffic noise and truly make a nice, calm environment in which one can truly relax.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

Seriously, are you still reading, or are you just looking at the pics?

Because really, when else would you have ever read the term "bumble butts" on this forum?  Or really, anywhere, for that matter.

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[Grant Lamontagne]

There's more, but it's getting late and my dog needs to go out before bed.  5am comes early...

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed looking at my pics, and can see how special this place is.

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[SteveC]

Thanks for the tour, it looks like a lovely park !   

[Grant Lamontagne]

It absolutely is.

It used to have a lot more trees but in 2003 Hurricane Juan came through and really tore up Halifax and much of the surrounding area, including this park.  It was closed for weeks afterwards as debris was cleaned up and hauled away.

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[pfrsantos]

Thanks for the tour, it looks like a lovely park !   

+1

 

[McStitchy]

Lovely park with some nice old trees and history. Parks like this are important especially in bigger cities. Not only for recreational purposes but also for the bumble-butts 

We're lucky to have a few around here in the south west of Ireland.

[Aloha]

Thanks for sharing this very nice park.  Looks like a great place with some great memories for those who've visited over the years. 

[tinker gnome]

  with McStitchy and Aloha.

I have to come back to the "bumble-butts". Some bumblebee species have parasites, mainly mites. One strategy against them is sleeping outside the house (hive) overnight. Therefore, the mites weren't spread across the hive-mates, and sometimes a cold night diminishes the pests. Well-watched, though. 

[Grant Lamontagne]

Yes, I have heard of that as well, but in 30C + weather I doubt they will be freezing any mites out!

Bees are fascinating creatures, and I really think there needs to be a city appointed apiarist who starts a hive, collects the honey and offers it for sale in the Gardens gift shop.  All proceeds of course, going to benefit the gardens.

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[Aloha]

Thats a great idea.  In the Appalachia mountains they are doing just that.  Local to us there are a few bee "farms".  How cool would it BEE to have local honey made by bees in that wonderful space. 

[Farmer X]

Seriously, are you still reading, or are you just looking at the pics?

Because really, when else would you have ever read the term "bumble butts" on this forum?  Or really, anywhere, for that matter.

Both. I've never heard the term "bumble butts" before, but I have referred to fireflies as "glow-butts."

Anyways, I hope you enjoyed looking at my pics, and can see how special this place is.

I very much enjoyed the photos, and I see how special the Halifax Public Gardens are. Thanks!

And may the smurfbirds who defaced those trees get their comeuppance.

[Poncho65]

Great pics Hopefully the trees recover from the damage 

It is a very nice looking park

[Grant Lamontagne]

Last year, in an effort to lift people's spirits during the pandemic, the government sponsored many projects such as this on at the Public Gardens.  It's called Holiday Lights and the idea was to help people get out of the pandemic funk by giving them a reason to go out of the house and look at something pretty and positive.

We went last year, and so we had to go again this year!  I took more video than pictures, but none of them does any of it justice!

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[Adam5]

Still looks good, even if the camera didn't capture the sights as you saw them 

Did the authorities ever catch who damaged the trees? I hope they were hung from their scrotums as punishment

[Grant Lamontagne]

Not that I am aware of.

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[Farmer X]

That's some heck of a light show!

[Grant Lamontagne]

I have some video too.  If you guys are interested I may try to play around with it.

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[Aloha]

That is pretty.