Rock Garden

The ROCK GARDEN under construction is a gift to the College from the Friends of the NSAC Gardens. The Friends is a dedicated group of approximately 25 volunteer gardeners who help maintain the specialty gardens at the College, as well as raise funds for new garden initiatives. The Friends are coordinated by Mr. Bernard Jackson, who retired to Truro after spending 22 years developing the Oxen Pond Botanical Garden in Saint John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. That garden has grown in both size and stature, and contains the largest rock garden in the Atlantic region. The rock garden we are building will be smaller, but will be the largest rock garden in the Maritimes, and will be a centre for education concerning alpine and saxatile plants, and how to create effective habitats in which to grow them.

The rock garden covers just over one-half acre of land, and is situated on a south facing slope. It consists of a rock face, two dry streams, a gravel scree bed, and a damp area. The rock face contains large crevices that will be planted with plants that will spill and tumble down over the rocks. The dry streams are located in two gullies, designed to look like old, rock lined erosion gullies. These will provide a place for plants that like to sprawl down a bank. In addition, the dry streams will collect and carry rain water away from the garden. The gravel scree bed starts at the base of the cliff face. It mimics areas of gravel that are created when weathering of cliff faces breaks away small pieces of stone. The scree bed will provide habitat for deep rooted plants that grow in the driest conditions. The damp area will be the area where run-off water is collected. It will be home to plants that want to grow in full sun, yet have a need for very moist soil.

• The rock garden provides a wide variety of habitats for plants.
• It is entirely created using Colchester county stone.
• It will be a remarkable collection of plants, providing opportunity for botanical study.
• It will provide a facility for the teaching of rock garden construction.
• The rock garden, in conjunction with other NSAC gardens, will be a tourist attraction for the Truro / Bible Hill area.

We expect the rock garden to be a high profile garden, written up in specialty plant journals and both National and International garden magazines. During the summer of 2004, the garden will be visited by delegates of the International Rock garden Society conference in Saint John’s, Newfoundland and Labrador. There will be many opportunities to promote a corporate sponsor.

Construction is underway, but we face the challenge of completing the garden. Consider the creation of any garden - site preparation is really only a fraction of the cost. The cost of the purchase of plants is expected to exceed construction costs, despite donations from individuals and other botanical gardens. The maintenance of the garden will be very challenging, but the Friends of the Gardens are committed to trying to meet that challenge.