Tending to the grounds at Royal Roads University requires a lot more detective work than one might think.

As a National Historic Site, Royal Roads employees are tasked with preserving as much of the siteB次元官网网址檚 history as possible. While that not only includes long-term planning for the entire estate, it also means maintaining the genetics of the plants that have put down their roots for generations to enjoy.

B次元官网网址淓very time you sink a spade in the ground youB次元官网网址檙e coming up with something,B次元官网网址� said head gardener Barrie Agar.

While part of her mandate includes maintaining the original vistas from the castle, it also involves unearthing the motivation for why the grounds look the way they did after the Dunsmuirs were finished with them.

B次元官网网址淲e keep looking and wonder who did what and eventually I guess weB次元官网网址檒l find out,B次元官网网址� Agar said.

In its archives, the university has a number of the original plans for the estate, including some of the gardens. But as Agar and others have discovered, there are some discrepancies between whatB次元官网网址檚 on paper and what has taken root.

B次元官网网址淓ven they had given up on a lot of things.B次元官网网址� Agar noted thereB次元官网网址檚 some trial and error. Sometimes, she said, certain varieties just donB次元官网网址檛 last in the future due to a number of factors. Others do too well and have to be taken out before they choke out other species in the area.

For example, very few of the varieties growing in the rose garden were called for in the original plan. Of the roses in the original plan, Agar said itB次元官网网址檚 almost impossible to get most of them as they no longer exist in their original forms.

Nowadays, she noted, weB次元官网网址檝e lost a lot of varieties because new blends have been developed that have a longer cut lifespan but had to sacrifice more traditional characteristics. While they may not have been mentioned on the original plan, that doesnB次元官网网址檛 mean some of the featured varieties arenB次元官网网址檛 deeply rooted in history. A variety called Rosa Mundi was first mentioned back in 1580. A number of others date back to the 1800s.

B次元官网网址淭hereB次元官网网址檚 some really beautiful roses in here,B次元官网网址� Agar said as she points out smell and other characteristics as she passes the different blooms.

And Agar is no stranger to the intricacies of working on a historical site. While working on a big estate in Ireland, she would have to painstakingly prune every bunch of Black Hamburg grapes that grew so they would ripen evenly.

In fact, she tends to the same variety locally but doesnB次元官网网址檛 have to prune each bunch. B次元官网网址淲ho knew it would be good training for here,B次元官网网址� she laughed. Although, she noted sometimes tending to the local grounds is a little easier than working in Ireland. Here, no one ever tells her B次元官网网址淏次元官网网址楴o, donB次元官网网址檛 move that, Great Uncle planted that.B次元官网网址橞次元官网网址�

The local vine is even grown in traditionally Edwardian fashion, with its roots planted outside and the vine trained to grow inside the glass house through an open panel. The heat is needed to ripen the grapes but the roots like cooler temperatures.

The grape vine isnB次元官网网址檛 the only piece of history in the glass house. On a tour Agar stops at a particular support, pointing to a silver scribble on the metal. She believes it references a variety of broccoli that was started inside before being transplanted in the field. ItB次元官网网址檚 dated 1918.

Located inside Royal RoadB次元官网网址檚 walled garden, the glass house was originally accompanied by a giant glass conservatory. It was a display garden, with a beautiful assortment of tropical plants. But keeping that structure warm in winter was no small feat. B次元官网网址淚t was something like 120 tons of coal and 200 cords of woodB次元官网网址� to heat. Agar said owning coal businesses came in handy for James Dunsmuir when footing that heating bill.

When the military took over the estate, they turned the conservatory into a place to teach celestial navigation. Unfortunately, Agar said B次元官网网址渋n the B次元官网网址�50s there was a big snow storm and it came down.B次元官网网址� No one ever bothered to replace it, but its footprint is still there.

Also housed inside the walled garden are a number of fruit trees. B次元官网网址淚n Britain it was often the wind that would do you in,B次元官网网址� Agar said. B次元官网网址淢ost big estates in England would have the walled gardens.B次元官网网址�

Once itB次元官网网址檚 ripe, the fruit is harvested from those trees as part of LifeCylcesB次元官网网址� Fruit Tree Program and donated to food banks in the region.

As an added bonus, the wall also offers a little extra protection against pests such as deer. B次元官网网址淚tB次元官网网址檚 a battle,B次元官网网址� she said with a shake of her head. But B次元官网网址渕ost of the heritage stuff thatB次元官网网址檚 left has survived the deer.B次元官网网址�

Deer are not the only creatures Agar has to contend with. The peacocks that roam the grounds, while beautiful, can also be a challenge. Adding touches such as kale to flowerbeds can often prove to be a gamble. B次元官网网址淭he first year I put it in the peacocks ate it all.B次元官网网址�

Like the peacocks, Agar herself is a bit of a transplant at Royal Roads and landed there by sheer coincidence. B次元官网网址淚 was applying for a job teaching at Camosun,B次元官网网址� she said when she ran into Royal RoadsB次元官网网址� then head gardener. He encouraged her to apply for a job at the university and she has been flourishing on the grounds for 17 years.

katie@goldstreamgazette.com