Peony Celebration Weekend

Alexander Reford

Alexander Reford is a trained historian and served as the director of the Jardins de Métis / Reford Gardens in Grand‑Métis, Quebec, from 1995 to 2025. This exceptional cultural and horticultural garden is located on the banks of the Saint Lawrence River. As the great‑grandson of Elsie Reford, he played a central role in establishing the organization Les Amis des Jardins de Métis, as well as in the restoration, conservation, and development of this iconic site. He also founded the International Garden Festival, a globally recognized event. He is the author of several books on garden history and is known for his visionary leadership in promoting gardens, landscape design, and horticultural heritage conservation.

Bénédicte de Foucaud

Bénédicte de Foucaud is the director of the Peony Conservatory, located in the moat of Château de Sourches in Saint-Symphorien, in the Pays de la Loire region of France. She oversees an extraordinary collection of more than 5,000 historic and modern peony varieties, one of the largest in the world. Passionate about preserving and promoting peonies, she shares her expertise through lectures and her book series, « Peonies: History and Cultivars ». Bénédicte is known for her educational approach and her ability to convey her love of peonies to a wide audience.

Lois Girton 

Lois Girton is an American peony expert, author, and speaker well known in the horticultural community. Passionate about peonies for many years, she has helped share knowledge about their cultivation, history, and diversity. She is the president of the American Peony Society. Her recent book, A Tyranny of Peonies: The Life of A. P. Saunders, is dedicated to the life and work of pioneering peony hybridizer A. P. Saunders. She contributes significantly to promoting and celebrating peonies with audiences across North America.

Don R. Smith

Don R. Smith is an American hybridizer widely recognized for his work with intersectional (Itoh) peonies, which are crosses between herbaceous and tree peonies. After a career as an atmospheric research physicist, he devoted himself to peony breeding and introduced numerous cultivars valued for their abundant blooms, strong stems, and expanded range of colours. His work has greatly contributed to the diversity and popularity of modern intersectional peonies in gardens worldwide.

Nick Maycher

Nick Maycher is a Canadian gardener and peony enthusiast based in Edmonton, Alberta, who is actively involved in peony societies across North America. He serves as President of the Canadian Peony Society and is a member of the Board of Directors of the American Peony Society. He promotes the cultivation, appreciation, and landscape use of peonies, and regularly speaks on peony topics to garden clubs and horticultural groups. He also contributes to peony education and events through writing, photography, and public presentations. On his website Prairie Peonies, he showcases peonies from his personal collection and shares information and advice for peony enthusiasts.

Lucie Pepin

Lucie Pepin is a Quebec gardener and passionate peony enthusiast who has served as President of the Société québécoise de la pivoine since 2013. In her garden in Acton Vale, she cultivates an impressive collection of about 330 varieties of peonies, including herbaceous, tree peonies, and hybrids. Under her leadership, the Société québécoise de la pivoine now counts close to 500 members. She also organizes the Grand Bal des pivoines, an annual event where more than 1,000 peony blooms are displayed. Deeply committed to promoting and sharing this emblematic flower, she enjoys passing on her knowledge and passion to fellow peony enthusiasts.

Peonies at the Reford Gardens

Paeonia ‘Elsie Reford’