Calgary’s Shakespeare Garden: Labour of Love
Carol Berndt
“The marigold, that goes to bed with the sun, and with him rises weeping.”
— Perdita, in The Winter’s Tale (1623)
A hidden gem in suburban northwest Calgary, the Botanical Gardens of Silver Springs stays open year-round, from dawn until dusk, for members of the community to escape to and enjoy.
Established twenty years ago, early developers first planted seven thousand trees along the boulevard and against the sound barrier wall separating the community of Silver Springs from the Crowchild Trail freeway. Since then, numerous community volunteers have created and continue to maintain a series of twenty-one themed gardens showcasing the variety of plants grown in Calgary’s climate. A 1.5-kilometre pathway meanders through forest groves, linking the themed gardens.
One of the most fascinating is the Shakespeare Garden. Except for the Arboretum in Vancouver’s Stanley Park, this is the only Shakespeare Garden that exists west of Stratford, Ontario. A Shakespeare Garden cultivates each of the 175 types of plants mentioned in the works of William Shakespeare. It includes clusters of species in profusion or in geometric layouts, decorated with walkways, benches, and statuary, with signs displaying relevant quotes from Shakespeare’s plays and poems. In his writings, Shakespeare used landscape and gardening knowledge to describe settings and characters, set mood, establish metaphors, and give symbolic meaning to certain plants. His references to trees, herbs, and flowers were observationally astute and botanically accurate.
Silver Springs’ Shakespeare Garden was initiated and funded by ARTA member Dominic Saliani. A retired English teacher, Shakespeare expert, and editor of the Global Shakespeare series of textbooks, Dom provided the inspiration and quotations for the garden, while a dedicated team of volunteers supplied the materials and labour. During the first years, before the city installed an irrigation system, plants were watered by linking a series of garden hoses to the Salianis’s backyard tap! Donations of benches, statues, and pottery were added over time, often as memorial tributes. The urban oasis remains an enchanting place to roam, read, and reflect.
Having visited parks around the world and being an avid gardener herself, Carol Berndt is grateful to the donors and volunteers who have transformed a neglected space into a lush, informative, and accessible botanical garden that all can enjoy.