History
of Open Gardens in Elgin
The
story of open gardens in Elgin goes back to the 1960s
and 1970s, when Lady Bourne opened her spring garden
each year to the public.
In
her early years she had befriended Collingwood Ingram,
the great Japanese flowering cherry enthusiast, and
it was through him that she acquired a number of cherries,
becoming the first person in South Africa to grow
them.
Her
garden (begun in the thirties) lay in a sheltered
kloof and featured terraced beds, a bluebell wood,
a jasmine pergola, a charming dog’s cemetery,
a sweeping lawn with islanded beds filled with roses
and irises, and a magnificent Judas tree. She also
designed many other gardens in the district, and her
influence is still felt today.
In 1991 Fresh Woods, well known for its collection
of heritage and species roses started by Maisie Knox-Shaw
in the early fifties, opened to the public for the
first time and has held open days each year since
then. A number of other gardens joined it later during
the period of the now-disbanded Elgin Festival.
In 2000 these gardens joined forces to become the
Elgin Open Gardens, with just 8 members. This year
(2010), the eleventh year of the scheme, there are
20 members.
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