The restoration of the West Gardens is one of the initiatives planned by the Jardin botanique de Montréal in preparation for its 100th anniversary in 2031. The project aims to preserve the site’s exceptional heritage infrastructure and improve water management. An accessible pedestrian pathway will also be built at the heart of the gardens. In addition, a new children-and-family area will be created on the current site of the Garden of Innovations.
Caring for the heritage gardens
When the Jardin botanique was founded, the West Gardens were designed by landscape architect Henry Teuscher. These gardens, which run parallel to Pie-IX Boulevard, will now undergo restoration:
- Perennial Garden
- Food Garden
- Garden of Innovations
- Monastery Garden
- Medicinal Plants Garden
- Toxic Plants Garden
- Shrub Garden
- Québec Corner
The restoration project aims to make the West Gardens universally accessible while enhancing the visitor experience. Another goal is to upgrade deteriorated infrastructure to safeguard this aging historical heritage. Among the features slated for restoration are the sewers, pergolas, and pools.
Rethinking water circulation
The restoration work will also improve the management of stormwater and potable water in this area. In the Shrub Garden, for example, new vegetated swales (shallow ditches) will channel excess rainwater toward the pond of the Flowery Brook.
Other measures, such as the addition of collection reservoirs, will make it possible to reuse water for plant irrigation. This approach will help reduce reliance on the municipal water supply.
A new space for play and exploration
The Garden of Innovations will become a welcoming place for children and families, a hands-on and participatory space for discovery. It will offer a first stimulating and inspiring encounter with vegetable gardens and the practice of gardening. Visitors will be able to explore the plants that nourish us, observe and touch the water that irrigates them, and even dig into the soil with their hands and get dirty!