Butchart Gardens Photos and Flowers

Butchart Gardens Photos. Enjoy photos of the beautiful flowers and unique blooms at Butchart Gardens, small taste of their huge plant collection.

Without a doubt, one of the huge draws of a 100+ year old garden designated a National Historic Site are the hundreds of varieties of plant species, with their beautiful and unique blooms. 

I've visited Butchart Gardens nearly half a dozen times (and I'm not done yet), each time capturing memories and photos of flowers that were not in bloom in other visits. It is as though each visit is a brand new one. This page presents our favorite photos of flowers.

More Butchart Garden Photo Tours:


Butchart Gardens Photos:
So many varieties of Dahlias!

A section of the long dahlia planterA section of the long dahlia planter

A main attraction at Butchart Gardens in summer and early fall is a dahlia planter stretching for several hundred feet along a curving walkway. There are plain and simple dahlias at Butchart Gardens. There are pincushion dahlias. There are frilly ones, full ones, spiky ones, and downright crazy ones. 

All the dahlia bulbs are cultivated at Butchart Gardens. In the spring they plant the bulbs in the ground. All the dahlia growth you see in this photo (taken in mid-October) has occurred in one season. When the blooming season expires, they pull out all the bulbs and rest them until replanting in the spring.

While I was there in October, a horticulturist examined the entire length of dahlias looking for any problems. She pointed out to me a little mildew (hard to see - I had missed it at first), but the plants were actually very healthy. And because they were still blooming vigorously, they were allowed to keep growing and blooming.

I know I have captured but a fraction of the huge number of dahlia varieties in the photos below. (Clicking on any photo opens a gallery of full-size photos.)

Dahlia Blooming at Butchart GardensDahlia Blooming at Butchart Gardens
Assorted dahlia varieties blooming at Butchart GardensAssorted dahlia varieties
Dahlia blooming at Butchart Gardens
Dahlia blooming at Butchart Gardens
Assorted Dahlias blooming at Butchart Gardens
Frilly pink dahlias at Butchart Gardens, Saanich, BC
Assorted dahlia varieties blooming at Butchart GardensAssorted dahlia varieties
Dahlia blooming at Butchart Gardens
Dahlia blooming at Butchart Gardens
Assorted Dahlias blooming at Butchart Gardens
Frilly white dahlias at Butchart Gardens, Saanich, BC
Elegant red dahlia at Butchart Gardens, Saanich BCElegant red dahlia
Salmon colored contorted dahlia at Butchart Gardens, Saanich BCAnd then there is this intriguing variety!

Butchart Gardens Photos:
Bees at Work!

I am so happy that Butchart Gardens uses no pesticides - they use natural and biologic controls, all of which preserve the bees so they can do what they do and still stay alive.

Bee is gathering nectar from dahlia at Butchart Gardens
Hot red dahlia offers its nectar to a honeybeeHot red dahlia offers its nectar to a honeybee
Honeybees and bumblebees heavily patrol the dahlias, not the least bit interested in people with such a feast of nectar awaiting.Honeybees and bumblebees heavily patrol the dahlias, not the least bit interested in people with such a feast of nectar awaiting.
Bee and bumblebee share the nectarBee and bumblebee share the nectar
Simple yellow dahlia at Butchart GardensSimple yellow dahlia at Butchart Gardens
Black-eyed Susans at Butchart GardensBee is loaded with nectar from Black-Eyed Susans and other blooms.

Butchart Gardens Photos:
Unique Plants

Racinus, or castor bean plant at Butchart GardensRacinus, or castor bean plant
A unique frilly bloom at Butchart Gardens
Purple berries of Callicarpa (beautyberry) at Butchart GardensPurple berries of Callicarpa

Over the years, the globetrotting Butcharts brought home plant species unknown to Vancouver Island, some of which are quite fantastical, and still thriving.

These first three species impressed me:

  • Racinus: Hot pink spiked wrecking balls of the deadly castor bean
  • Light and stringy puffs on lacy foliage 
  • Callicarpa, or Beauty Berry. Red berries, blue berries, and even white berries I know. Seeing bright purple berries was a bit startling!
Himalayan Blue Poppy growing at Butchart Gardens, Saanich BCThe famous Himalayan Blue Poppy (Meconopsis)
Large red blooms at Butchart GardensLovely red bloom flaunts its beauty.
Fuchsia bloom at Butchart GardensFuchsia
Bleeding heart blooms at Butchart GardensBleeding Heart
Small blue 5-petaled blooms at Butchart Gardens, Saanich, BC
Angelonia, highly detailed, very creative, blooming at Butchart Gardens near Victoria BCAngelonia, highly detailed, very creative (not me - the Creator)

Butchart Gardens History via Wiki


Cities near Butchart Gardens

  • Port Angeles via the Coho Ferry:  37.2 miles (60 km) (approx. 2.5 hours)
  • Victoria BC: 19.7 km (12.25 miles) (approx. 26 minutes)
  • Sidney BC: 15.6 km (9.7 miles) (approx. 19 minutes)
  • Vancouver BC: 103 km (64 miles) (approx. 3.2 hours)


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