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included an orchard, grape arbour, kitchen gardens and the more formal areas of lawn and display beds. These gardens represent more than just a beautiful landscape for a stately home; they are a reflection of our history in which we can discover everything from household economy to upper class social values and aesthetic preferences. Spadina today features more than 300 varieties of plants in


an historic setting that has been reproduced through archae- ological studies on the grounds and painstaking research through family diaries, old drawings and photographs, jour- nals, letters and stories told by members of the Austin family. The graceful front entrance to the house, with its porte-cochere and formal flower beds, has been reproduced using old photographs so that it looks as it would have in 1905 when it was first landscaped. The annuals planted today are more modern cultivars of the ones used back then. Hybridization has produced petunias, for instance, in a range of colours and sizes far removed from the original small blue or white flowers. Not as intensely hybridized as annuals, the perenni- als planted in other area of the grounds probably differ little from those that might have been grown at Spadina 90 years ago. Much original plant material can still be seen on the


Rhododendrons and forget-me-nots grow in happy contrasting colours,


grounds; the magnificent white oaks; for instance, predate the house. There are other mature ornamental trees plant- ed by the Austin family that preserve the intent of William Warren Baldwin when he initially cleared the site to provide a view of Lake Ontario. Other plants still growing include the lilacs, peonies, daylilies and irises, as well as a rose identified as ‘Dorothy Perkins’, “one of the best of the old ramblers,” according to a garden writer of the Edwardian period. The gardens and house plants are supported by a greenhouse built in 1913. The orchard includes varieties of apples not commonly


available today. The ‘Red Astrachan’ is a soft dessert apple and does not keep long or ship well so it has been dropped from nursery catalogues. At the turn of the century, a nurs- ery might list over a hundred varieties, today thirty is more likely. The archaeological excavations at Spadina revealed a


The stately entrance to Spadina house.


system of brick-lined cinder paths and a parterre ornamental garden both of which have been restored. This parterre is a kitchen garden surrounded by a border of perennials and, although the area was probably a vegetable garden as far back as the Baldwin time, it is not known when it was divided into the present shape and outlined with bricks. The intent of the planting style was to disguise the utilitarian nature of the garden when it was viewed by guests from the formal south lawn. The Garden Club of Toronto helped raise funds for the


rehabilitation of the Spadina grounds and the gardens remain connected with various garden groups. In partner- ship with Not Far From the Tree, Spadina Museum presents City Cider each September. Not Far From the Tree demon- strates proper heritage-apple picking methods; the apples from the Spadina Orchard are pressed into cider so that it can be served to visitors, while Spadina gardeners offer tours of the historic gardens. The public can stroll around the restored historic gardens


The grand staircase. 74 • Fall 2016


year-round. x For all the great events taking place at Spadina Museum: Historic House & Gardens go to toronto.ca/museum-events.


localgardener.net


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