Founding the Montreal Botanical Garden: Henry Teuscher and Montreal’s Botanical Treasure

May 7, 1936

On this day, dear reader, I must confess a particular delight in sharing news of ambition realized and dreams cultivated. For it was on this day, that Henry Teuscher—a man of extraordinary vision and not inconsiderable determination—broke ground for what would become the Montreal Botanical Garden.

Our Mr. Teuscher had been appointed superintendent and chief horticulturist of this future horticultural haven, and one must acknowledge the grandeur of his aspirations. Like any gardener with an empty plot and a head full of possibilities, Teuscher began dreaming—though his canvas was considerably larger than our modest borders and beds.

By autumn of that same year, Teuscher had orchestrated the employment of 2,000 previously idle gentlemen through the Quebec government's unemployment assistance program. How clever of him to cultivate both plants and opportunities simultaneously! Under his exacting eye, by 1939, the administration building stood proud, production greenhouses flourished, roads wound their way through the landscape, and two lakes reflected the clouds above—all manifestations of one man's horticultural vision.

But alas! The shadows of war brought storms more fearsome than any gardener's typical concerns of frost or drought. Being German by birth proved most inconvenient during such fraught times, and our protagonist found himself entangled in accusations of espionage for the Nazis. Though declared innocent—as any sensible person might have predicted—these unfounded allegations extracted their pound of flesh from his spirit.

Yet persistence in gardens, as in life, often yields the sweetest rewards. In 1956, Teuscher stood witness to the opening of his cherished greenhouses—the culmination of his botanical dreams made gloriously tangible. One imagines the particular satisfaction of seeing seeds of ambition, planted decades prior, finally in magnificent bloom.

Teuscher departed this earthly garden in 1984, but his legacy continues to flourish. Since 1999, the Henry Teuscher Award has honored those whose hands and minds have contributed meaningfully to Quebec's horticultural advancement. The 2018 recipient, André Poliquin—horticulturist, trained biologist, and passionate communicator—carried the torch of enthusiasm for clematises, roses, and orchids for nearly four decades.

One cannot help but reflect upon the peculiar immortality granted to gardeners. While we mere mortals fade, our gardens—if properly planned and nurtured—continue revealing our vision, our character, and our understanding of beauty long after we've departed. Teuscher's garden stands as testament to this most comforting truth: that what we plant with passion continues growing without us.

Perhaps, dear gardening friends, we might all aspire to leave such living monuments to our botanical obsessions. Though your humble plots may not span the acreage of Montreal's treasure, they nonetheless carry your signature, your vision, your peculiar understanding of harmony and beauty. In this way, we are all kin to the ambitious Mr. Teuscher, dreaming our gardens into existence, one trowel-full of soil at a time.