Creating a place of enjoyment, learning and tranquillity for all.

A botanic garden is a place where named collections of plants, both native and exotic, are kept for observation, scientific study and general enjoyment.

The members of the Fredericton Botanic Garden Association are people from all walks of life with the common goal of establishing a botanic garden which all can enjoy.

The site of the Fredericton Botanic Garden is on a hillside backed by the old growth forest of Odell Park, with a glorious view across the St. John River valley. Blessed with features such as terraces, rocky ledges, springs and a stream, the garden will take advantage of all these natural habitats as construction continues.

Uses for the Botanic Garden:

Uses for the Fredericton Botanic Garden are nearly endless. Landscape designers and garden centres are encouraged to use our plantings to showcase their work. Children are welcomed with interpretive programs and children's gardens.

Evening sessions are available for hands-on, practical garden training monthly during the winter. Artists, photographers, bird watchers and nature enthusiasts will find interest in the garden in all seasons. Access to the garden for disabled persons will be considered at each stage of the garden development.

It is our hope that everyone in Fredericton will enjoy the Botanic Garden and will recommend a visit to their guests. If you haven't visited lately, come and see the changes our garden grows each year. After visiting our site we hope that you will feel inspired to become involved in the process of developing the garden, whether by participating in our workshops or by becoming a member of our association.

The Fredericton Botanic Garden is a work in progress that we think will benefit everyone!

IN MEMORY OF HAL HINDS

In the Spring of 1988, Hal Hinds contacted plant enthusiasts in New Brunswick interested in establishing a Botanic Garden in Fredericton. They met in the auditorium of the Biology Department of the Fredericton campus of the University of New Brunswick and pledged to put their energies into building a Garden. An executive committee, under Hal’s leadership, held the founding meeting of the Fredericton Botanic Garden Association in October 1989 with Hal as president. Under his leadership the FBGA became incorporated, identified a Garden site adjacent to Odell Park, and negotiated an agreement with the City of Fredericton to make the Garden a reality. Hal also helped organize the first Spring Plant Sale in 1990. Pictures of this Sale in the Association’s albums show an enthusiastic Hal loading plants onto sales tables, meeting the public, and identifying plants. Hal continued an active involvement in the Botanic Garden and the FBGA honoured him with a citation and plaque at the 10th Annual Plant Sale.

Hal came to Canada to homestead at Cross Creek, New Brunswick and started work in the Biology Department at UNB. He achieved the position of Senior Teaching Associate and Curator of the Connell Memorial Herbarium. He was bestowed the rank of Senior Teaching Associate Emeritus on his retirement in 1997. Hal published scientific articles on the plants of New Brunswick and published two editions of The Flora of New Brunswick, the second in 2000. This is an outstanding compilation of information on the plants of New Brunswick. Hal’s expertise was further recognized when he was invited by the Missouri Botanic Garden to contribute to the massive North American Flora project and worked in St. Louis, MI, on the Polygonaceae section of that Flora.

Hal contributed to the protection of New Brunswick’s rare and endangered plants in many ways. He was a founder of the Nature Trust of New Brunswick and its first Executive Director. He was a Director and Vice-President of the Conservation Council of New Brunswick. He chaired the Natural Areas Sectoral Group of the Premier’s 1990 Round Table Discussions on the Environment and the Economy. Hal’s work for the protection of our environment was a labour of love. His efforts were recognized by national and provincial awards from such organizations as the Canadian Park Service, the Canadian Council on Ecological Areas, the Canadian Nature Federation, and the Conservation Council of New Brunswick. In 2000, the New Brunswick Department of Natural Resources recognized Hal’s contribution to conservation in New Brunswick by setting aside a remnant of Appalachian hardwood forest on Harvey Hill, near Woodstock. A boulder was placed on the hill with a simple inscription: The people of New Brunswick dedicate this unique woodland to Harold R. (Hal) Hinds, botanist, teacher, and author of our flora, as a tribute to his tireless work to protect our native plants. Henceforth, may this place be known as the "Hal Hinds Forest".

Hal’s joy was his garden on Albert Street in Fredericton. It is a beautiful and imaginative garden on a difficult, long, narrow site. When Hal could not dig up an enormous boulder, he made it the basis of a beautiful rock and scree garden. A consistently wet area became his pond. Hal loved primulas and he was unique in that his primulas grew in full sun. The secret, he said, was to have really well-amended soil that never dried out. The primulas were so happy in Hal’s garden that they re-seeded themselves. Hal, generous as ever, shared his plants with friends and gardeners - these plants, now in our own gardens, continue to remind us of Hal.