Located along the entrance to the Guelph Turfgrass Institute, the trial garden's 1,400 square metres of growing space allows gardeners to see what flowers and plants perform best in southwestern Ontario's climate. It's the only university operated ornamental trial garden in Ontario and is part of a network of research centres across North America set up to determine which plants grow higher and fuller, bloom quicker, stand up in extreme weather conditions and resist common plant diseases.