Lower Saint Lawrence / Reford Gardens
Garden tours & Lectures
An invitation to celebrate peonies with us!
REGISTRATION STARTS ON MARCH 21, 2026
Join us for a weekend of activities organized jointly by the Société québécoise de la pivoine, the Canadian Peony Society, and the Reford Gardens on Saturday, July 4, and Sunday, July 5, 2026.
On the program:
Explore private gardens in the region and the Reford Gardens, attend engaging lectures, and enjoy connecting with fellow peony enthusiasts.
🪻We thank the sponsor of the speakers’ dinner
Parkland Peonies
ℹ️Info
- The garden tours and activities will take place rain or shine.
- Members are asked to register in advance for one or both days via the registration form (starting March 21st, 2026). Registration fee will be $10.
- DATELINE TO REGISTER: JUNE 12, 2026.
- The contact details of the private gardens to be visited will be sent by email to registered members during the week preceding the tours.
- A valid SQP membership card must be presented on both Saturday and Sunday. The CPS will mail membership cards in advance. It will not be possible to register or obtain the card on site.
- No organized transportation. Participants travel on their own, but carpooling is encouraged.
- Lodging options are listed below.
- Some lectures may be presented in French. A person will be available on site to provide translation.
IMPORTANT!
The lectures and garden tours are reserved for members of the Société québécoise de la pivoine and members of the Canadian Peony Society.
📅Preliminary Program
Friday
Kamouraska
Pivoinerie de Kamouraska1:00 PM – 4:30 PM
- Optional visit on your own
Saturday
Reford Gardens / Jardins de Métis
Museum of Tools
9 AM – 6 PM
- Cut peony flowers exhibition
Great Hall9 AM
- Registration and housekeeping
9:15 AM – 10:00 AM
- SQP – AGM
10:15 AM – 10:40 AM
- Opening lecture: Elsie’s peonies / Les pivoines d’Elsie, by Alexander Reford (Bilingual lecture)
10:45 AM – 11:15 AM
- A Summary and Impacts of the Latest DNA Research on Tree Peonies / Un résumé et les impacts des plus récentes recherches sur l’ADN des pivoines arbustives by Don R. Smith (Lecture in English – Parallel visual presentation in English and French; French translation provided by a member)
11:15 AM – 12:15 PM
- Lunch on your own: We recommend the Café-bistro Le Bufton, located in the Reford Gardens Visitor Center.
Métis-sur-Mer
12:30 PM – 3:15 PM
- Visit of 4 private gardens in historic residences of Métis-sur-Mer:
Penny Dobson Garden
MacDougall-Bethell Garden
Stuart Iversen Garden
(to be confirmed)
Matane Region
4:00 PM – 4:30 PM
- Private garden visit: Marie-Ève Gauthier and Julien Pelletier
4:45 PM – 5:15 PM
- Private garden visit: Manuel Ouellet and Dany Gagnon
5:30 PM – 6:30 PM
- Private garden visit: Marie Couture and Yves Gauthier
6:45 PM
- Restaurant Café Aux Délices (group dinner, at your own expense, reservation required, limited seating)
Sunday
Reford Gardens / Jardins de Métis
Museum of Tools
9 AM – 6 PM
- Cut peony flowers exhibition
Great Hall8:45 AM
- Registration and housekeeping
9:00 AM – 9:50 AM
- Le Conservatoire de la pivoine, by Bénédicte de Foucaud (Lecture in French – English translation provided by a member)
9:50 AM – 10:40 AM
- Saunders’ Peonies, by Lois Girton (Lecture in English – Parallel visual presentation in English and French; French translation provided by a member)
10:40 AM – 11:30 AM
- Recent Progress in Breeding Advanced Generation Intersectional Hybrid Peonies, by Don R. Smith (Lecture in English – Parallel visual presentation in English and French; French translation provided by a member)
11:15 AM – 12:30 PM
- Peonies in Canada / Les pivoines au Canada –Roundtable discussion moderated by Nick Maycher and Lucie Pepin (Bilingual activity)
- Tribute to Mrs. Mary Pratte, 2026 recipient of the CPS Lifetime Achievement Award for her outstanding contributions to the Canadian peony community,
12:30 PM – 1:30 PM
- Lunch on your own: We recommend the Café-bistro Le Bufton, located in the Reford Gardens Visitor Center.
1:45 PM – 3:30 PM
- Guided or on-your-own tour of Reford Gardens and of the International Garden Festival
🎤Our speakers
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 Conservatoire de la pivoine, 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, « Les pivoines : Histoire et 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 more than 350 varieties of peonies, including herbaceous, tree peonies, and hybrids. Under her leadership, the Société québécoise de la pivoine now has nearly 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.
🌟 Tribute to Mary Pratte
For her overall contribution to the knowledge, preservation, and promotion of peonies in Canada, the Canadian Peony Society is pleased to honour Mrs. Mary Pratte with its 2026 Lifetime Achievement Award.
Former president of the Canadian Peony Society, Mary Pratte has been an influential figure within the organization through her leadership, educational work, and ongoing commitment to the preservation of historic peony collections in Canada.
In her garden in Ottawa, she created a remarkable perennial landscape in which peonies hold a place of honour. As a member of the Friends of the Farm, she also contributed, on behalf of Agriculture and Agri-Food Canada, to the re-establishment and enhancement of the extraordinary peony collection at the Central Experimental Farm in Ottawa, helping to preserve and showcase a nationally significant horticultural heritage. Mary also maintains a special connection with the Reford Gardens. Over the years, she has generously volunteered her expertise in the identification and documentation of the peony collection, including many historic cultivars originating from the plantings of Elsie Reford, the original creator and owner of the Gardens. Her work has helped preserve and highlight this important horticultural legacy.
🏡Tour of local gardens
La Pivoinerie de Kamouraska
La Pivoinerie du Kamouraska is a horticultural enterprise specializing in the production of peonies, both for cut flowers and for the sale of roots. Located in the Lower St. Lawrence region of Quebec, it cultivates numerous varieties of herbaceous peonies destined for florists, markets, and home gardeners. During the blooming season, visitors can also discover the peony fields.
Note: If you’re driving to Grand-Métis or Matane, consider stopping by on Friday. (details to follow)
The historic gardens of Métis-sur-Mer
In the heart of Métis-sur-Mer, several grand properties bear witness to a time when wealthy Montreal families spent their summers along the banks of the St. Lawrence River.
Behind these historic homes lie carefully maintained private gardens, where lawns opening onto the river, perennial borders, mature trees, and shaded pathways create charming English-style gardens. Four of these gardens, exceptionally opened to visitors, offer a rare glimpse into this horticultural heritage. While each has its own character, they share the same spirit: that of summer estate gardens designed for strolling, contemplation, and the enjoyment of flowers throughout the season.
Located only about 15 minutes from the Reford Gardens, these private gardens beautifully complement the discovery of this unique cultural landscape of the Bas-Saint-Laurent.
Flower gardens of Matane
Departing from Métis-sur-Mer, a pleasant drive of about 35 minutes along the river road will take us to Matane, where three passionate gardeners will generously open their gardens to us. [See schedule above]
The garden of Marie-Ève Gauthier and Julien Pelletier
In the heart of Gaspésie, our Matane garden grows to the rhythm of the seasons and of our own hands. Classical in style, it has gradually woven itself around an abundance of perennials: delicate primroses in spring, generous peonies — both herbaceous and tree — elegant irises, fragrant lilies, soothing hostas, and radiant daylilies that carry the garden through the height of summer.
My first passion was long devoted to peonies, especially Itoh varieties, whose grace and strength continue to amaze me. A few tree peonies also hold their place here, lifting their sumptuous, almost theatrical blooms above the garden. Today, I also devote time to amateur daylily hybridizing, humbly seeking to create new harmonies of color and form.
Everything here is shaped by hand. We work as a close-knit team: I dream and design the plans, choose and care for the flowers; my husband welcomes spring with the big clean-up and has built every structure, fence, and pathway that supports this small living world.
Despite our short, cool seasons, we try to make the most of the beauty of this little corner of paradise. For me, this garden is a refuge, a magical place that brings moments of pure happiness.
Our garden is a place of patience, experimentation, and quiet joy — a space where nature and shared work tell, year after year, the same story, renewed.
The garden of Manuel Ouellet and Dany Gagnon
The garden of Marie Couture and Yves Gauthier
My garden is a place of gentle wandering, woven with paths that invite discovery. Along the way, you’ll find a sunlit summer pavilion, a serene Chinese pavilion, and a small farmhouse that echoes the simple charms of the past. The former children’s camps have become our own quiet retreats, filled with memory and calm.
As you stroll, small man-made ponds mirror the sky, a fountain brings movement with fish gliding beneath the surface, and artistic touches punctuate the landscape. A rich variety of trees and plants shapes this living space, complemented by a modest greenhouse and an abundance of flowering containers.
And then, just around a bend, the view opens onto the river… like a breath.
The Reford Gardens / Jardins de Métis
Created between 1926 and 1958 by a visionary horticulturist, Elsie Reford, the Reford Gardens / Jardins de Métis are a National Historic Site of Canada.
Her bold project was to transform a fishing camp into an exceptional garden. With the help of people from the region, Elsie succeeded in turning a spruce forest into a remarkable garden that would become one of the most important plant collections of its time.
Today, some 3,000 species and varieties of plants, including the famous Himalayan blue poppy, are spread across about fifteen gardens.
Peonies at the Reford Gardens
With more than 120 species and cultivars, the peony collection is one of the richest in a northern climate. In late June, the peonies behind Villa Estevan are in full bloom—a true delight for the eyes and the senses.
And that’s just the beginning! The hundreds of peonies along the Allée Royale take center stage in July, transforming the path into a majestic avenue of fragrant flowers.
Paeonia ‘Elsie Reford’
International Garden Festival
Adjacent to the Reford Gardens, the largest festival of contemporary gardens in North America features around thirty installations created by some 70 landscape architects and designers from a wide range of disciplines and backgrounds. It creates a dialogue between history and modernity, between conservation and innovation.
🌸Peony display
A display of peonies from Reford Gardens and friends will be featured on site, and you are welcome to contribute by bringing cut peonies from your own garden. (Please note: this is not a judged peony show.)
🏨Lodging options
Activities will be held primarily at Reford Gardens in Grand-Métis.
Le Gaspesiana is located in the nearby village of Sainte-Flavie (mention « Groupe Pivoines« , to access the reserved block of rooms). There may also be local inns and B&Bs available at a higher cost. Note: to our knowledge, Le Gaspesiana is fully booked.
Mont-Joli is a town with many recommended lodging options, located 15 minutes east of Grand-Métis.
Saturday’s final garden tours and dinner will be held in Matane, 45 minutes from Reford Gardens. This larger town offers additional lodging options.
Finally, a few campgrounds may appeal to the more adventurous.
In any case, book early! The region is popular with tourists in July.
🧭Directions
By car
The Reford Gardens are located about 3 hours and 30 minutes from Quebec City. See: Google Maps link.
By air
The nearest airport is Québec City Jean Lesage International Airport (YQB). From there, we recommend renting a car. The drive to Grand-Métis takes about 3 hours and 30 minutes.
Arriving at Montréal–Trudeau International Airport (YUL) involves a drive of approximately 6 hours.
