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    • Rose Bloom Balling
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Hatley Castle's Italian Garden

Fantastically FOrmal Italian

Hatley Castle's Italian Garden
October 2021
formal garden design
August 2015
formal Italian garden at Hatley Castle
November 2006
Hatley Castle, built in 1908 for coal baron James Dunsmuir, is one of Canada's renowned National Historic Sites. The castle is grand, elegant and very beautiful – inside and out. Located in Greater Victoria, British Columbia, this mansion and extensive grounds is also home to the Royal Roads University. Among the 650 acres there's the Rose Garden, The Italian Garden, the Japanese Garden and hundred of heritage trees dotted around the estate including a 250 year-old immense Douglas fir.
loggia at Hatley Castle
This is part of the circular corridor (loggias). A wisteria covered gazebo is at each end of the loggia.
Hatley Castle
A view of the house from the curved loggia with an angel trumpet on the left and an elephant's ear (Colocasia) on the right.
The Italian Garden is a perfect example the symmetry and geometry associated with formal designs. From the central pavilion lies a rectangular garden. Each corner of the rectangle is anchored by a large ornate marble urn. The urns are dressed differently each year with inventive and delightful plant combinations using bedding and tropical plants. The shape of the rectangle is denoted by tightly clipped hedges with openings for paths that open up to the outer area. The hedges, paths and statues are the bones of the garden; they never change, however, the beds that surround them do. They are filled with bedding plants such as dusty miller, fountain grass, purple kale and coleus. Since the plant combinations change yearly, the garden is never the same. Inventive plant groupings never fail to inspire. I was blown away when purple kale was used in bold rows, behind blue salvia and dusty miller. It's such a creative use of kale. It made me look at kale in a whole new light. 
Picture
October 2021, this formal border includes fountain grass (Pennisetum alopecuroides 'Hameln') at the rear, dusty miller (Senecio cineraria) in the middle and a deep maroon coleus (Solenostemon scutellarioides) in the foreground.
Picture
August 2015. Curly purple kale plants rise above the blue mealycup sage (Salvia farinacea) with dusty miller in the foreground.
There are two parts to this article as the grounds are extensive. The first instalment covers the Italian Garden, the second part is all about the exquisite Japanese Gardens and surrounding grounds. These pictures are mostly from my visit from October 2021, but I have also included some ones from the past to show how inventive the designs are over the years. I was a bit too late for the Rose Garden since I visited late in October, however Italian and Japanese Gardens were in full autumn glory, much to my delight. I hope you enjoy this walk through the Italian Garden at Hatley Castle estate. To go to their website click on Italian Garden. 
Hatley Italian Garden August 2015
August 2015. White snapdragons, tower above purple heliotrope with salmon African daisies (Osteospermum) in the foreground.
Hatley Italian Garden
October 2022. Although this is a formal design, it is still feels quite casual due to the informal forms of the plants.

Picture
The paths are framed by openings from the covered path attached to the main pavilion.
Picture
Potted standard trees are typical accents in an Italian garden.
Picture
Three Roman urns are simply spectacular!
Picture
A path leading to the wisteria covered arbor and entrance to the loggia.
Picture
One of the four statues representing one of the four seasons.
loggia
The wisteria covered curved loggia is a walk through an Italian villa.
Picture
Yes, they even have banana plants!
Hatley Italian Garden
Looking towards the castle from the pavilion.
Picture
They must store this orange ginger (Hedychium gardnerianum) in a frost free place over winter as it isn't hardy in B.C.
Picture
I managed to capture a visiting hummingbird!
Princess flower,Angel trumpet,Tibouchina,Brugmansia,tropical plants,Hatley
A princess flower (Tibouchina) in the foreground and a white angel trumpet (Brugmansia) are the stars of the formal gardens at the front of the castle.
Anise-scented sage,Salvia guaranitica
Anise-scented sage, Salvia guaranitica. A true-blue annual with blackish stems attracts hummingbirds and pollinators.
permaculture,red cabbage border,Hatley Castle
Red cabbage, with white lavatera in the background and white verbena in the foreground make an unusual but attractive grouping. From November 2015.
lion statue at Hatley Castle
A lion statue is peeking through the blue flowers of anise-scented sage (Salvia guaranitica).
white cup-and-saucer vine,Cobaea scandens 'Alba',flowering vine
A bee attends a white cup-and-saucer vine, Cobaea scandens 'Alba'.
Picture
A lush perennial garden is adjacent to the Italian Garden.
Picture
A borrowed to the perennial garden view from the pavilion.
Picture
A view of the Hatley Castle from the Italian Garden.
Picture
Simple, symmetrical, and elegant.
Picture
A pink sage (Salvia splendens), accents one of the four season statues.
Picture
Even in October, the garden is full of flowers and colour.
Picture
Impressive art deco light posts.
Picture
The urn lined path to Royal Roads University.
Angel trumpet,Brugmansia,tropical plants
Tropicals are included in the garden, including this dramatic white angel trumpet (Brugmansia).
Verbascum nigrum,dark mullein
Verbascum nigrum, dark mullein, is a short-lived perennial or a biennial.
Japanese anemone,Anemone hupehensis var. japonica
A pink Japanese anemone, (Anemone hupehensis var. japonica).
Black-eyed susans,Rudbeckia hirta,feverfew,Tanacetum parthenium,October flowers
Black-eyed susans (Rudbeckia hirta) and feverfew (Tanacetum parthenium) flower at the same time.
'Prairie Sun' Black-eyed Susan,Rudbeckia hirta,October flowers
'Prairie Sun' Black-eyed Susan, Rudbeckia hirta is a bright and cheery annual.
Monk's-hood,aconite,wolfsbane,Aconitum napellus,toxic plant
Monk's-hood, aconite or wolfsbane (Aconitum napellus).
white mullein,Verbascum,fall flowers
A Delphinium and white mullein (Verbascum).
Picture
A creamy-white dinnerplate dahlia from the perennial garden.
perennial garden Hatley Castle
The perennial garden is on the other side of the Italian Garden and is well worth a visit.
pink hardy fuchsia,Fuchsia magellanica var. Molinae,autumn flowers
A delicate pink hardy fuchsia (Fuchsia magellanica var. Molinae)
October flowers,autumn flowers
An orange dahlia and anise-scented sage (Salvia guaranitica) make a great combo.
plant containers,planters,urns,Hatley Castle Italian Castle
It's all about the purple fountain grass in this elegant marble urn.
white Himalayan poppy Meconopsis baileyi 'Alba'
A white Himalayan poppy Meconopsis baileyi 'Alba', is a rare cousin of the blue Himalayan poppy.
Hatley Castle
Hatley Castle, October 2021

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  • Home
  • About, Services, Contact
  • Ask Amanda
  • Roses
    • Types of Roses
    • Easy Roses
    • Climbing Roses
    • Portland's Rose Test Garden
    • Rose Insects & Diseases
    • Pruning Roses
    • Rose Sawfly
    • Rose Bloom Balling
  • Pruning Basics 101
    • Pruning Tools
    • Winter Pruning
    • Pruning Grapes
    • Pruning Clematis
    • Prune Your Own Garden Registration
  • Lawn Basics
    • Lawn Reno, Seed & Sod
    • Lawn Maintenance Schedule
    • Spring Lawn Care
    • Moss in Lawns
    • Lawn Alternatives
    • Lawn Grub Control
  • Mulch & Mulching
    • Living Mulches - Groundcovers
  • Propagation
    • Growing Seeds Outdoors
    • Growing Seeds Indoors
    • Taking Cuttings
    • Seed & Plant Catalogues
  • How to Garden Topics
    • Fall Garden Chores
    • Planting Know-How
    • Soil Building
    • Watering Tips & Techniques
    • Drought Gardening
    • Sheet Mulching, Lasagna Gardening
    • Cover Crops
    • Composting
    • Compost Tea
    • Houseplant Winter Care
    • Hummingbirds in Winter
    • Winterize Your Garden
    • Ponds in Winter
  • Growing Food
    • Spring Veggie Gardening
    • Crop Rotation, Succession & Companion Planting
    • Harvesting
    • Growing Potatoes
    • Winter Veggie Gardening
    • Taming Tomatoes
    • Speeding up Tomato Harvest
    • Tomato Tips
    • Saving Tomato Seeds
    • Tomato Troubles
  • Plant Pests 1
    • Plant Pests Part 2 - Controlling Insects
    • Garden Inspections
    • Helping Pollinators
    • Dogwood Anthracnose
    • Viburnum Leaf Beetle
    • Dormant Oil/Lime Sulfur
    • Japanese Beetles
    • Peony Blotch/Measles
    • Slugs & Snails
    • Horsetail, the Weed
    • June Beetle
    • Powdery Mildew
    • Soil Solarization
    • Rhododendron Leaf Spot
    • Plant Rusts
    • Black Knot
  • Container Growing
    • Choosing a Container
  • Feeding Plants 101
    • Fertilizers & Ratios
    • Nutritional Deficiencies & Toxicities
    • Organic Plant Food
  • Plant of the Month
    • Spring Flowering Bulbs
    • Colourful Fall Plants
    • Abelia
    • American Sweetgum
    • Ash (Fraxinus) Trees
    • Astilbes
    • Aubretia, Rock Cress
    • Aucuba, Japanese Spotted Laurel
    • Autumn Crocus
    • Bear's Breeches
    • Beautyberry, Callicarpa
    • Black-eyed Susans
    • Bleeding Heart, Lamprocapnos spectabilis
    • Calla Lilies
    • Dahlias
    • Daylily
    • Delphiniums
    • Devil's Walking Stick, Aralia spinosa
    • Dwarf Alberta Spruce
    • Dwarf Burning Bush
    • Fall Asters
    • Flowering Currants
    • Flowering Quince
    • Fritillaria
    • Garden Peonies
    • Garden Phlox
    • Ginkgo biloba
    • Grape-hyacinths
    • Handkerchief or Dove Tree
    • Harry Lauder's Walking Stick
    • Heathers
    • Hellebores, Lenten roses
    • Himalayan Sweet Box
    • Jack-in-the-pulpit, Cobra Lily
    • Japanese Anemones
    • Japanese Forest Grass
    • Japanese Maples
    • Japanese Skimmia
    • Japanese Spurge
    • Laurustinus viburnum
    • Lavenders
    • Lily-of-the-Valley Shrub, Pieris japonica
    • Mediterranean Spurge
    • Mexican Mock Orange
    • Montana Clematis
    • Mountain Ash
    • Oriental Poppies
    • Oriental Lilies
    • Paperbark Maple
    • Pink Dawn Bodnant Viburnum
    • Poinsettias
    • Oregon Grape Holly
    • Ornamental Kale
    • Peruvian Lily, Alstroemeria
    • Phalaenopsis, Moth Orchids
    • Persian Silk Tree
    • Portuguese Laurel
    • Rose of Sharon
    • Sneezeweed, Helenium
    • Snowberry
    • Snowdrops
    • Star Magnolia
    • Strawberry Tree, Pacific Madrone
    • Stewartia
    • Torch Lily, Kniphofia uvaria
    • Tree Peonies
    • Tuberous Begonias
    • Virginia Creeper
    • Weigela
    • Winterhazel, Corylopsis
    • Winter Camellia, C. sasanqua
    • Wintergreen, Gaultheria procumbens
    • Witch Hazel
    • Wood Anemones
    • Yews
  • Garden Tour Blogs
  • Monthly Flower Arrangements
  • Website Index
  • Subscribe
  • Need Help?