Gardens will be primarily located in Northeast Winnipeg
The community garden is the Seven Oaks Arboretum located at 430 Partridge avenue where we have our plant sale and last minute tickets available from 9am – 3pm. The West Kildonan Horticultural Society members volunteer to take care of the planted areas and continue to expand their care of this beautiful park.
There are 13 home gardens that have been selected for the 2026 Gardens of Distinction tour:
1. Arlie S
My garden features a mix of perennials, annuals in window boxes, pots filled with vines and other shade loving plants, and vegetables planted here and there. It is one of the many gardens in our neighborhood that are part of the Glenelm Butterflyway. Gardening with flowers all around a tall older house comes with challenges. Certain plants need to be more drought tolerant, others require more sun or shade. Finding just the right plant for the right location is so incredibly rewarding! Glass flowers made from vintage dishes peek out between hydrangeas and bee balm. An old cook stove serves as a bar that holds edible flowers to garnish drinks with. A courtyard provides privacy to sit alone or with friends and enjoy the flowers.
2. Judy S
Flowers, vintage and terraced are three words to describe my yard. Living on a pie-shaped lot on Bunn’s Creek lends itself to lots of space. With the help of a gifted gardener, we have transformed a lot of the garden beds over the last 10 years. In doing so I’ve realized my yard has become my happy place. I love vintage and you will find all sorts of treasures scattered throughout. The fun is in the hunt and I have found things anywhere from thrift stores to roadsides or on Facebook Marketplace. I love colour so you will see lots of it in the flowers and shrubs. Welcome to my garden. I hope it makes you smile.
3. Tania S
Lovingly procured over the last 16 years from bare patches of grass and mud, the gardens of Blais House, the only registered Heritage Site in Transcona, is where I accidentally discovered my zeal for gardening. Saunter through the cozy front cottage-style garden, offering a kaleidoscope of colours. Zany Zinnias, Maltese Cross, Dahlia, Lilies, Stonecrop and Peony, supported by a gentle backdrop of grasses, Bee Balm, Hydrangea and Haskap berry bushes. Nestled alongside the driveway are Hostas, Ferns, Iris, Impatiens, Tree Lilies and a beloved ancient apple tree. Watch for lots of whimsical, decorative frogs
peeking out. The back patio is framed by a zen shade garden of Ostrich Fern, Siberian Iris, Lady Slippers, Anemone and a tiered water fountain. A sunny rear garden greets you with raised beds of Joe Pye Weed, Coneflower, Veronica, Penstemon, Hydrangea, Daylilies and herbs, supporting pollinators and butterflies. Vertically grown tomatoes and cucumbers playfully tumble over the fence.
4. Heather S
I moved to this house in 2001 and it was a blank slate. In my established neighbourhood, almost everything is in the shade. Happily, I love hostas! My backyard, while compact, is an oasis with a deck, pond, pergola, and fireplace. Hydrangeas play a prominent roll in the landscaping because they provide so much interest – starting in July and lasting through the fall. I’m an eclectic gardener but gravitate to plants that are lime green to brighten the shady areas. Packed into every available space you’ll find sedum, coral bells, cone flowers, roses, irises, spireas , peonies, cranesbill, ninebark, bee balm, and day lilies. My garden unfailingly provides peace and happiness.
5. Sue S
“The glory of gardening: hands in the dirt, head in the sun, heart with nature.” Alfred Austin. My garden has been growing and evolving for years. I’m inspired by gardens in books and magazines and by the ones I visit on tours as well as on our travels. The garden is a place to play, experiment and to be creative. When we sold our Lake Winnipeg cottage, my goal was to recreate cottage life in the backyard. Certified by The Canadian Wildlife Federation, it is a wildlife friendly habitat which includes annuals, perennials, shrubs and vegetables.
6. Roswitha N
My small corner lot has evolved into my sanctuary of favourite plants. I love my martagon lilies, day lilies, peonies, and irises. My column apple tree and hydrangeas complete my treasured plants. Each corner has its own plant story to tell, while providing calm seating areas surrounded by ongoing blooms throughout all seasons.
7. Anthony and David’s Garden
Under a canopy of huge trees, I have set out to create many different moments using art, nature and a wide range of plants. It’s a cottage style shade garden full of dahlias, lisianthus, zinnias, oddities, and perennials featuring daylilies, hostas, lilies, and iris. There are also alpine and opuntia beds, a magnolia tree, hardy hibiscus, and many smoke bushes. Eighty containers are where I exercise my floristry skills. The garden is a place where I experiment, envision, relax and entertain. We encourage you to visit, envision, imagine, and feel good about nature and art with us.
8. Eileen E
The garden is a mixture of ideas that developed over the years with my many interests in life influencing the unique design. The installation of a large in- ground pool in 1986 allowed for a perimeter of English-style garden flowers. A small serene Japanese-style area with 40 year old bonsai trees adorns the back corner. With the addition of a quaint little She Shed built in 2015, and my strong interest in helping the monarch butterflies, pollinator-type-gardens were added. Come enjoy all the nooks and crannies of this cute garden adventure.
9. Mona Lisa L
Our secret little garden oasis has been transforming over the years. It’s our getaway within the city. You’ll find a butterfly sanctuary where we help nurture monarch and swallowtail caterpillars by keeping them safe from predators. You’ll find many butterfly friendly flowers. In our lovely pond, we have a few fish and might also see a variety of songbirds enjoying play time in the water. We hope you enjoy our garden.
10. Jan G
Our contemporary cottager garden in the back, features a pond, wandering garden beds displaying both common and unique flowers, vines and hanging pots. Walk through a trellis of morning glory, into our hidden garden behind the pool and sit and enjoy the view from the pond patio. It’s our “staycation” retreat and everyone is welcome!
11. Arlene O
Easy living with a lush look. Featuring an impressive variety of brilliantly colored, low care foliage, my garden includes impactful floral plantings and accessible raised beds. A welcoming deck and seating area complete with this cool, leafy retreat. Over my professional career, you may have seen me on early Breakfast TV or hear my voice on Dorothy Dobbie’s “The Gardener on CJOB or spoken with me at a Garden Centre or attended one of my many gardening seminars or Junior Gardener’s teachings. I’ve been involved in the gardening world in Winnipeg for decades and gardened in the Dominican for a number of years. Although I’m no longer able to grow my Bird of Paradise, in the 5 years at this home, I have created a low maintenance garden with a tropical feel. Step in and enjoy.
12. Lynne M
For 42 years gardening has been my favorite enterprise. The yard has always been bracketed by two large gold cedars, but the garden started as one small bed in front of the house and one behind. Gradually the gardens spilled out all the way to the street including the boulevard, and in the back to the lane. The amazing diversity of plants, a lot of them pollinator favorites, start early spring with crocuses and blue squalls that seem to reflect the sun, then daffodils, rises, golden Alexanders, peonies, and onto cone flowers, swamp milkweed, clematis, Veronica, salvias, meadow rues, and day lilies. The summer starts are sanguisorbas, phlomis tuberosa, and persicarias. It ends with a big bang from New England asters, autumn monkshood and grasses. I always try to boldly do what I’ve never done before. MY aim is to make the whole garden live long and prosper.
13. Robert and Susan
May our garden delight you with the sights, sounds, and fragrance of surrounding nature. Trees, shrubs, perennials, bulbs and annuals from our driveway entrance to surrounding our home. The centre attraction, our large garden pond and the sound of the water falling to soothe your soul. Birds, bees visit & thrive on natural Mb prairie vegetation more recently incorporated. The consideration of beauty & environment for us & nature to share yet be adaptable to the changing climate. From an expanse of grass since our arrival in 1986, a work in progress and ever evolving state. Just a short 15 min. drive from N.E. Perimeter will be WORTH YOUR TRIP!!!
Written by the 2026 volunteer home gardeners.