Keppel Croft Gardens
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About Keppel Croft
Come and explore Keppel Croft Gardens at Big Bay, on the beautiful Bruce Peninsula.
We have four acres of gardens, a nature trail, an arboretum, and Keppel Henge.
Enjoy your picnic at one of our numerous picnic spots.
Days and Hours
Wednesday through Sunday, and Holiday Mondays : 10 am - 5 pm
May 16th - October 12th, 2026
Contact us for after hours visiting and photography sessions. The light is so beautiful outside of visiting hours!
Entrance $5 per person. Children free.
Dogs on a lead are welcome.
Contact
Bill and Dawn Loney
Georgian Bluffs, Ontario
N0H 2T0
519·534·1090
Website renovations made with support from Jennie Hoekstra.
An Annual Event at Keppel Croft Gardens
Summer Solstice at Keppel Henge on
Saturday, June 20th, 2026
Come and celebrate this annual event.
The Bluewater Astronomical Society hosts this event.
Bring your picnic and your curiosity. All welcome.
2026 Garden Journal
Access to all 2026 Garden Journal entries will be
on a page coming soon. It is a work in progress.
April 2026
April 19
Tete-a-tete daffodils
Iris reticulata
Squill or scilla siberica (blue) and. striped squill or Puschkinia scilloides (white with blue stripe)
Snowdrop or Galanthus
As a joke, Bill bought me a pot of snowdrops from IKEA-
quite convincing!
Glory of the Snow or
Chionodoxa luciliae
April 17
We are carefully cleaning off the shoots of our peonies. Already the shoots are filling out. The first spring I lived in Canada. I was given an armload of peonies. I had never seen anything so beautiful.
Among the Peonies. Emily Bi and Dennis Zang open their Annan garden, June 12th and 13th. Their peonies are breath takingly beautiful.
Here are some of our peonies last year in June..
April 15
Three years ago the dry stream bed was a raging torrent after heavy rains. Two large trout swam up the dry stream bed and ended up in one of our ponds.
Our friend, Keith, came with two nets. With a bit of improvising to extend the handles the hunt was on!
The fish were driven to the Big Bay dock. It was the opening day of the Trout fishing season.
To the total astonishment of several trout fishermen, Bill and Keith released the fish into the stream that comes into the bay west of the dock. Numerous trout were already swimming up this stream as it was spawning season. Our two trout would have a more successful time up this stream!
April 14
More rain. Major repairs needed for the dry stream bed. Garden mulch has floated away and will need to be replaced.
April 10
Winter is unwilling to leave. We woke to another coating of snow and drove to Owen Sound at 30 kph. The snow ploughs were not active on this part of Grey Road #1 early on that morning. We got the ice scrapers and the snow shovel out of storage. Still have our snow tyres on the car, thank goodness!
The day before, on a beautiful sunny spring morning, I had hung out the laundry, Love the smell of laundry dried outside in the sun.
April 5
Right now it looks as though a bag of large scruffy Brussel sprouts has fallen in the garden. Posies of blossoms will come.
Petasites japonicus or Butterbur makes a spectacular display with its big leaves and bold appearance. These plants left their original garden, went around the pond and under a fence to establish an eye catching row by a rail fence. This was not part of the garden plan.
April 3
The first Iris reticulata of the season! This Easter Bunny was making the most of the end of the winter bird seed season, nibbling up the fallen seeds.
April 1
A surplus of orchid blossoms is useful for making litle table posies as Easter gifts. They last really well!
Our Garden Guest Book
Our Guest Book
Absolutely divine. Whimsy and nature, rocks, stones, pottery and all of nature's beauty.
Linda L., Owen Sound
So special a place, twenty five years visiting and still so beautiful in its aging prime.
S. Rodrigues. Toronto
In June in 2025 we found an unexpected potted shrub by the workshop. In the Guest Book we found this comment:
The Daphne is a gift from Gwynn and Jana in thanks for your hospitality last year. We have had a lovely time in your garden today. I hope you can find a space for the Daphne and that it does well for you. Gwynn and Jana.
Thanks, Gwynn and Jana. We planted your Daphne by the patio edge. Come and enjoy the scent in the spring. We are delighted with your gift. Thanks again.
Rural Gardens of Grey and Bruce Counties
We are founding members of Rural Gardens of Grey and Bruce Counties. Visit the RGGB website featuring our member gardens for information about each garden, gardening advice from experienced people and for special events offered by our members: www.ruralgardens.ca/
