Gosling Wildlife Gardens Updates

Thanks to a generous gift from the Gosling Foundation, the Gosling Wildlife Gardens are undergoing a multi-year revitalization project, featuring updates to the themes, plant collections, ponds, and other garden features. Watch here for occasional photos and notes on this ongoing construction.


The Pollinator Garden has new plantings! A Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum) and several Dwarf Fothergillas (Fothergilla major ‘Mount Airy') have been planted and protected for winter.

Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum)

Sourwood (Oxydendrum arboreum)

An orange Dwarf Fothergilla (Fothergilla major ‘Mount Airy')

Dwarf Fothergilla (Fothergilla major ‘Mount Airy')

 Dwarf Fothergilla (Fothergilla major ‘Mount Airy')

Dwarf Fothergilla (Fothergilla major ‘Mount Airy')


The Permaculture renovations are underway! We have begun preparation for the landscaping in the Permaculture Garden and the woodland side of the same garden.

Permaculture garden with layout prepared

Preparation for the hardscraping in the Permaculture Garden

Woodland in the Permaculture Garden

The woodland in the Permaculture Garden


We recently developed a new woodland trail connecting the Native Plant Garden and the Permaculture Garden! The trail features a mulch pathway that meanders through Ostrich Ferns, Wild Yam vine, Mayapples, and mushroom logs. In the future, the edges of the trail will feature plantings of Ginseng, Wild Ginger, Wild Leeks, and different species of mushrooms among other edible woodland plants.

Trail winding through trees and ferns
Trail between Garden 3 and 4

Currently, the pond in the Pollinator Garden is under renovation. The pond will be reconstructed in Spring 2021. The reconstructed pond will feature a new pumping filtration system, rock waterfall feature, and additional shelves for bog plant species and other pond-loving plant species.


Over the course of the next two to three years, The Arboretum will transform the Suburban Garden into a new Permaculture Garden. This major revitalization project will bring new life to this garden and form exciting connections with the urban farming movement and the agricultural innovations that the University of Guelph is so famous for. Visitors can look forward to a demonstration of the growth of edible plants in the Permaculture Garden. To see what we have in store, view our plans for this garden below.

Proposed plan for The Permaculture Garden in The Arboretum.