Abbey Gardens

WE LOVE COMMUNITY

Abbey Gardens is a not-for profit charity providing economic and recreational opportunities for our community. Everything we do on site helps further our mission to create opportunities to learn about living more sustainably. If you want to learn about local food, gardening, energy, sustainable construction techniques, heritage agricultural animals, land restoration or cooking techniques, this is the place to visit!

FROM A DREAM

Everything fell into place when John Patterson, a retired businessman, came up with the idea of bringing a local gravel pit back to life as a garden. He’d been to see Butchart Gardens, a national historic site near Victoria, B.C., and the Eden Project in Cornwall, U.K., the largest indoor rainforest in the world, both of which are rehabilitated open-air mines and world-class gardens.  He was inspired by the idea of creating a greenspace where the community can gather, learn and enjoy and began his search for a gravel pit in Haliburton County.

TO TODAY

Today, our site features local food shopping opportunities through our Food Hub, interpretive trails, heritage breed displays, programming and event spaces, picnic areas and kiosks,  gardens and more!