beyond your backyard

the Governor General's golden garden

at the entrance to the Visitor Centre at the Governor General's residence in Ottawa is one of three IYOP commemorative gardens. This garden was designed by CWF volunteers, Gaston Tessier and Paul McLellan, with assistance from Ed Lawrence, formerly the Governor General's gardener. It is a living reminder that a beautiful garden can also benefit wildlife by providing plants for food and shelter.

Designing this model garden was not as simple as choosing which native species birds, bees, and butterflies like most. The Rideau Hall gardens were originally designed to resemble English gardens, and that tradition continues.

The 1991 Rideau Hall Landscape Conservation Study (compiled by the National Capital Commission) identifies plants historically found in the gardens. Following this guide, Paul and Gaston chose their plants as artists would their colours and proportions. They also considered flowering times to ensure that the garden blooms from spring until fall.

In 1999, then Governor General Roméo LeBlanc officially opened the model garden at a June 22 ceremony. You're invited to stop by the model garden near the Visitor Centre at Rideau Hall in Ottawa. The plan for this garden, plus 15 other wildlife projects, appears in our Golden Gardens booklet. See Golden Gardens to find out about getting your own copy of this booklet.

Planting List

Plant	Benefit to Wildlife
Bee-balm Monarda didyma	Nectar attracts bees, butterflies, hummingbirds and other pollinators
Bellflower Campanula spp	Nectar attracts butterflies and hummingbirds
Black-eyed Susan Rudbeckia spp	Nectar attracts butterflies, bees, hover flies, and other pollinators; food source for butterfly caterpillars
Bleeding heart Dicentra spp	Nectar attracts butterflies and hummingbirds; food source for butterfly caterpillars
Columbine Aquilegia spp	Nectar attracts hummingbirds, bees, and moths
Coneflower Echinaceae spp	Great nectar plant for hoverflies, bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds; food source for butterfly caterpillars; finches eat the seeds
Coral bells Heuchera sanguinea	Nectar attracts hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators
Delphinium Delphinium spp	Nectar source for pollinators and hummingbirds
Evening primrose Oenothera spp	Nectar source for pollinators, clearwing and sphynx moths
Forget-me-not Myosotis spp	Nectar attracts butterflies, bees, and moths in early spring
Foxglove Digitalis spp	Nectar source for hummingbirds, butterflies, and other pollinators
Gayfeather Liatris spp	Nectar source for hummingbirds, butterflies, and all pollinators
Iris (Miniature and Siberian) Iris spp	Nectar attracts butterflies and hummingbirds
Lavender Lavandula spp	Food source for butterflies and all pollinators
Maltese cross Lychnis spp	Nectar source for bees, butterflies, and hummingbirds
Oriental poppy Papaver spp	Food source for bees, butterflies, and other pollinators
Shasta daisy Chrysanthemum spp	Attracts butterflies, hover flies, bees, and other pollinators
Showy stonecrop Sedum spp	Food source for butterfly caterpillars; butterfly nectar source especially in late summer
Tickseed Coreopsis spp	Nectar source for butterflies and pollinators; food source for finches in late summer
Violet Viola spp	Food source for butterfly caterpillars in early spring