Susan and Jim Watson lived at Brunswick Beach in the mid nineteen sixties and for many years thereafter. Susan, a keen gardener, knowledgeable horticulturist, active member of the Primula Society and Honorary Life  Member of the Alpine Society of BC, created a fascinating garden of rare plants in their unique forest environment on Howe Sound. Well known at Brunswick for her generosity with plants, Susan welcomed visitors from Britain, the USA, and BC. 

In the mid nineteen sixties our earliest residents may recall the then common sight of tiny Susan and Jim Watson collecting rocks and weathered wood from the side of the highway, and somehow loading it into their large Pontiac with its re-enforced springs.  These they used to start building the garden of their new house under construction on the south side of Magnesia Creek east of the highway.

Many didn't realise how much Susan contributed to the horticultural scene in the sixties and seventies.  Her house and garden were constantly filled with horticultural visitors from elsewhere - Britain, the U.S.A. and B.C.  All expressed a live interest in the rare plants she grew exceptionally well in the unique surrounds of their forest environment.

Over forty years ago I had glanced up our driveway here to see a very small woman attractively clad in a full skirted woolen dress coming down our gravel drive. I greeted her at our door.  "I've noticed your windows from the highway.  Would you mind if I had a closer look at them?" she asked. I'm designing our new house in Brunswick Beach. After inviting her in, her first reaction was "Oh, this is the wrong house!"  She had seen the much more muted subtle blue-grey house with a large window of the Passmores two doors north.  Within minutes we both recognized that we shared much in common - mostly a great interest in plants and had mutual friends in Britain and elsewhere. 

Jim Watson was quite a few years Susan's senior.  A dour Scot, a fine small man who was a King Pin of the then very popular 'Blue Whale' peat-based fertilizer company situated at the Richmond Peat Bog.  As a widower he had obviously fallen for Susan, a lively American woman, and led an extraordinarily active life with her until he died in his nineties.  Susan only realized his age when she saw his birth certificate after his death.

Susan was an Honorary Life Member of the Alpine Garden Club of British Columbia.  She had previously been very active with the Primula Society and I believe they amalgamated when she was active in both.  We kept in touch, she very interested in my botanical painting and allied interests.

Father visited us soon after we had met.  Early in his stay here we were invited for lunch at their then home in Richmond on the edge of the peat bog.  There, Susan had built berms of different heights and shapes to relieve the flatness of the bog and to offer her interesting 'homes' for her fascinating collection of rare primulas and other companion plants.

After lunch we were asked if we would like to walk on the peat bog.  Father was delighted, as always we were interested in observing plants we hadn't previously seen in their natural habitats.  Susan, again in her favourite pale green dress, drove us out on to the bog where we wandered, botanizing, as Susan and Jim went off to find any treasures of bleached wood or suitable plants for their new garden.  We were aware from a distance that she was picking these up and filling her full skirt (as a basket).  Realising that they were not heavy, she promptly utilised a second skirt underneath and soon that was full. When she attempted to fill her petticoat too, Father didn't know where to look!

Susan leant on Father to guide her in how to scientifically research various plant families which she hadn't found enough written about and hoped to publish more complete information herself.  She sought many books internationally which she couldn't find in the extensive Woodward Library at U.B.C.  For her research she had her own way of reducing copying mistakes by zeroxing the relevant material, cutting out and pasting the sections in her lists.  Recognising the different typefaces of her reference books helped to ease her cross-checking and eliminate many possible errors.

Well established in her new home and garden, an invitation came from Susan on a lovely late Spring day - would I like to bring our children for a walk up to the waterfall above their house?  Jim had spent a couple of days clearing a path for us on the south side of the creek.  With sunlight filtering through the young green leaves on the wet rocks of the glistening creek, we were enchanted.  Our daughter, Andrea, then about nine, had been brought up with the Flower Fairy Books.  She was in 'Fairyland' as she lay caressing the deep moss on one large fallen tree trunk. Jim who had been following us realised his labour was fully appreciated.

Susan was well known in the then very small resident community of Brunswick Beach for her generosity with her plants.  If they could be split up she would share them.  She will also be remembered for playing bridge with Madge Rogers and Myrna Gates and anyone else she could interest.  She continued to garden despite severe rheumatoid arthritis - Jim to chop wood until the day he died.

After Jim was no longer around, Susan, very crippled by then, decided she must move.  Today I am still very grateful to her for her gift of fine reference books for my own horticultural library, and plants for our garden

One more credit to her.  Susan had been the instigator for bringing Dr. Fletcher, Director of the Royal Botanic Garden in Edinburgh to advise on the suitability of the old Shaughnessy Golf Course as a suitable site for the future VanDusen Botanical Garden.  This he endorsed and at the same time intrigued our local Primula enthusiasts with his vast knowledge of the genus and other plants.

Zeppo, the Watson's house builder, also built a cottage for himself on the north side of the Creek.  He became very well known in Whistler.  We haven't heard what has happened to him.  With his extraordinarily fine physique he was very much part of the Brunswick community when we moved here forty-three years ago.

Now, for the enjoyment of our residents, a very energetic group of residents here are opening up paths to allow us to walk from boundary to boundary in our Village and perhaps to visit friends en route without using our cars.  We have much to thank them for, and can perhaps think back to some of our earliest residents as we take advantage of these new possibilities.

Comments (0) >>

Write comment

You must be logged in to a comment. Please register if you do not have an account yet.