YORKTON - What does a conservatory in Regina and one of the first鈥�痵canning machines have in common?
Here’s the story. On January 1, we were happy to join throngs of enthusiastic visitors at Government House in Regina for the annual New Year’s Levee. As the Government House site tells us, “In Regina, the Levée provides hundreds of people with the opportunity to exchange New Year’s greetings with the Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan, and tour the historic Government House while enjoying entertainment, refreshments, and activities.” It was a great day, wonderfully hosted by the Honourable Russ Mirasty, S.O.M., M.S.M., Lieutenant Governor of Saskatchewan” and Her Honour Ms. Donna Mirasty. They are both very gracious and friendly people and made everyone feel like they were welcoming friends to a gathering.
Government House was a beehive of activity, with revellers touring the house to see the beautiful Christmas decorations, then partaking of refreshments and visiting. We found ourselves by the conservatory, where we managed to find a place to sit, people-watch, and enjoy a hot cup of coffee. The conservatory was a very pretty spot, which I wanted to tell you about.
Now…here is the rest of our story. I did some homework and found out that the conservatory was started in the early 1900’s by a Scottish landscape- designer George Watt, who had a vision of an oasis of greenery on the prairie landscape. In 2005, during Saskatchewan’s centennial, the conservatory gained a new name, the Sylvia Fedoruk Conservatory, named after our province’s first female Lieutenant Governor from 1988 to 1994. And in case you didn’t know, Sylvia Fedoruk was a prairie girl, born in Canora, went on to obtain a master’s degree in physics at the U of S, and made history thanks to her involvement in the development of the “cobalt bomb” which was the first machine of its kind that could target radiation to treat cancer.
So now you know what those two seemingly unconnected things have in common! We never stop learning!
About the conservatory: it is a very lovely spot, and if you are visiting Government House, it is rejuvenating to see the plants that live there.
Likewise in summer, the grounds of Government House feature the beautiful Edwardian Gardens: there are thousands of plants, peaceful pathways, and a chance to enjoy this garden vista as though wandering through assorted “garden rooms”. And guess what, some of the stately trees were planted by George Watt all those years ago. Whether winter or summer, gardeners can enjoy horticulture and history at Government House. Mark it down on your list of “garden trips for 2024”! maybe that could be a garden resolution: to try to take a few gardening jaunts here and there to see and learn about different gardens!
The Yorkton and District Horticultural Society will not be meeting until March, so please check our website at for details.
Have you started looking at seed catalogues yet, either by printed page or online? It’s so exciting to see those new varieties on offer. Did you ever wonder why growers develop new seeds? There are several reasons, so maybe we can chat about them next time.
Thank you to our friends at Yorkton This Week for their hard work all year. Have a great week!
