Cultivating community: 100 years of public gardening in Creemore
by Christine March
The Creemore Horticultural Society took root during a boom in public gardening in Canada. It was a time of societal and economic change; a time of peace between the two great wars; women were making gains; immigration was increasing; Canada was transforming from a rural to an urban country.
In her 1984 book, Rhetoric and Roses; A History of Canadian Gardening, author Edwinna von Baeyer wrote: “Theses first 30 years [of the 20th century] were an exciting era, characterized by a variety of horticultural innovations as well as an abundant rhetoric, frequently forceful, sometimes moralistic, which influenced the creation of our ornamental gardens in railway stations, school grounds, vacant lots and our own back yards”
When local businessman Jacob Hisey founded the Creemore Horticultural Society in April 1921, the goal was “to encourage among our citizens the love of flowers, shrubs, to hold exhibitions from time to time and to make Creemore the prettiest village in Canada and to encourage among the citizens the love of well kept lawns, clean streets and beautiful gardens.”
The Hort’s mandate expanded in 1925 when the young organization accepted the challenge of designing and maintaining the gardens adjacent to our local CNR station. This project marked the beginning of the Hort’s 100 year history of beautifying Creemore’s public spaces.
Local historian Helen Blackburn, in the April 22, 2021 issue of The Echo, wrote, “In early spring the surface of the soil was levelled and grass seed sown. CNR donated suitable shrubbery and plans were underway for flower beds. By September the society received compliments on the attractiveness of the CNR park.” CN Rail would continue to provide plant material for these gardens until 1939.
This early project became, in time, the Hort Park. And the Hort Park became the green beating heart of Creemore: the Village Green Gardens. You may not know that our portfolio also includes Grandmother’s Garden (snuggled in between Creemore Log Cabin and North America’s Smallest Jail) and the Library Gardens next door.
For 100 years, our volunteers have devoted time, knowledge and energy to keeping Creemore beautiful. From the days of the early settlers to the modern, vibrant village we love, the Creemore Horticultural Society continues to cultivate community. Cheers to celebrating beautiful public spaces maintained by devoted volunteers. May that good and important work continue for another 100 years. If you would like to join us, simply send an email to creemorehort@gmail.com.
Christine March is a director with the Creemore Horticultural Society.
Contributed photo: Creemore Horticultural Society volunteers working on the Village Green gardens in May, from left: Melissa Doherty, Gillian Stoker-Lavalle, Kathy Meeser, Gail Cocker, Alice Spyrc, Linda Dermott, Cecily Ross, and Marg Riddell.
