VanDusen Botanical Garden is a "tranquil paradise" right in the center of Vancouver, Canada. The garden encompasses 55 acres on busy Oak Street, half-way between downtown and the international airport, both 10 minutes away.

It is hard to believe that just 25 years ago this 55 acre, wooded garden was a golf course about to become a housing subdivision. A group of concerned citizens took up the challenge and it is now a garden of international stature.

"We were astonished by the range of plants, the inventiveness of the design and the beauty of the garden as a whole. It is a splendid place, even in the dead of winter," wrote Wayne Winterrowd of North Hill Garden Design Associates after a recent visit.

The Garden is threaded with pathways that interweave a series of 46 display areas and plant collections. In some areas, the plants are arranged to show the botanical relationships. For instance, the Rhododendron Walk contains 942 different varieties which burst into a magnificent display of color from March to the end of May, also enhanced by a variety of companion plantings. The winding Holly Walk, in its prime in December, surprises the visitor with 156 different varieties. The advantage of this arrangement is that differences can be seen and compared.

Other areas of the Garden are arranged according to geographical origin. In Area 26, a collection of trees, shrubs and wildflowers native to the Eastern part of North America quickly illustrates to the meandering visitor the predominance of deciduous trees when compared to the coniferous evergreens in the western forests. All the areas are artistically linked together in compatible landscape groupings.

The entire garden design is a monument to the skill of the late William Livingstone in creating picturesque landscapes with dramatic rocks and water features. Since the 1970's the Curator Roy Forster has personally supervised the placement of all the important plantings. In the process, he has given the garden its soft edges, its romantic corners and its impressive naturalism.

While these woodland gardens are a delight any time of the year, the show of spring wildflowers is breathtaking. Local residents come every week as spring unfolds to find spring bulbs under the Oak Collection, the famous Himalayan blue poppy in the Meconopsis Dell, native Trilliums and fields of Primula "Ceperley Hybrids" at the end of Heron Lake.

Children enjoy solving the puzzle of the Elizabethan Hedge Maze while their parents can look out at the bold four acre Alma VanDusen Meadow Gardenfrom the viewpoint above. This garden has been described as halfway between wild meadow and herbaceous border with a babbling brook and two small ponds.

There is something for everyone at VanDusen, with every element labeled. This labeling program is perhaps the most important feature at VanDusen. gardens. Both garden designers and home gardeners alike use this garden as a resource when selecting plant materials. LASN