Innisfail, Alberta railway station in the 1890s.
Innisfail’s historical schoolhouse.
The patio garden
A detail of the patio garden.
ings. The site is furnished to interpret local history through the buildings, historic gardens and a large display of farm machinery. The Boardwalk Heritage Garden,
S
located in front of the Boardwalk Building contain plants with a local history while others were included or donated as they were typical of plants grown in these early years of
tep back in time to the 1930s and before in this historical village which is made up of 18 build-
Innisfail Historical Village include
Alberta’s settlement. Some of these plants
clarkia, nasturtiums,
marigolds, and poppies (Icelandic - Papaver nudicaule, Opium - Papaver somniferum, and Oriental - Papaver orientale) and pansies (Johnny jump up - Viola tricolor). Many settlers grew the opium poppies for their seeds which were produced in abundance and are excellent for use in cooking. Other plants you can find their gardens include: monkshood (Aconitum napel- lus), spurge (Euphoria
polychroma) 1879. The Edmonton Agricultural
which originated from eastern Europe, snow in summer (Cerastium tomento- sum) another plant that originated in Europe, lungwort (Pulmonaria spp.), flashing light (Dianthus
deltoides),
asparagus (Asparagus officinalis. Lili- aceae) a hardy perennial vegetable that was common in many early gardens, daylily (Hemerocallis
spp), clustered
bellflower (Campanula glomerata), and peony (Paeonia spp.). Peonies are long- lived perennials that are still found at many abandoned homestead sites. x
Important activities and achievements from Alberta pioneer gardeners 1830. From this point, when the
Hudson’s Bay Post was constructed just below the present legislature building in Edmonton, until 1870, when the sale of Rupert’s Land to Canada opened the way for settlement of the West, kitchen gardens and vege- table crops were planted in and around Fort Edmonton. Turnips, potatoes and cabbage were grown in large quantities for use in the winter while more tender vegetables were grown in smaller quantities for summer eating.
1876. Pioneer settler Donald Ross
opened the city’s first hotel, known simply as the Edmonton Hotel. Ross grew a large vegetable garden from which he drew the produce used to feed his guests. He was an enthusiastic entrant and frequent winner in horti- cultural bench shows.
localgardener.net
Society held its first exhibition. Within a few years the horticultural bench show sponsored as part of the yearly exhibition attracted the entries of enthusiastic gardeners from Edmonton and the surrounding community.
1891. Peasant farmer Ivan Pylypow
left his home in Galicia-Bukovyna, leading the first wave of Ukrainian immigrants to Canada. He eventu- ally homesteaded in the “park belt” forest areas northeast of Edmonton, the oldest and largest Ukrainian settle- ment on the prairies. When Pylypow went back home to wind up his affairs, he was tried and jailed for six months for encouraging his fellow Ukrainians to emigrate. Every home in this new settlement area had a vegetable garden, well-stuffed with the traditional beets
and cabbage as well as the family’s favourites.
1900. The Edmonton City Market
opened in central Edmonton. Farmers and gardeners brought produce and bedding plants to sell to town dwellers.
1935. In August, an Edmonton
newspaper article notes admiringly the approximately 15 gardens in the city operated by Chinese gardeners. Hong Lee’s famous garden on the river flats west of Victorian Golf Course was described as a “tapestry worked out in rectangles of harmonious greens, sea green, sage green, olive green, and the delicate apple green of lettuce beds.” Chinese market gardeners sold their produce to stores, hotels and they were welcomed as vegetable pedlars in many residential neighbourhoods. x
Fall 2016 • 53
Photos courtesy of Innisfail Historical Village.
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