Southern Garden Symposium
Lectures ~ Workshops ~ Gardens
October 23-24,2026
Program
The Southern Garden Symposium, in partnership with The Institute of Classical Architecture & Art, Louisiana Chapter, will host a series of programs exploring the connections between classical architecture, landscape design, and Southern cultural traditions. The Symposium focuses on preserving and celebrating gardening in the Deep South by providing engaging lectures, hands-on workshops, and guided tours of historic gardens at Afton Villa, Butler Greenwood Plantation, and Rosedown State Historic Site.
Friday Morning, October 23, 2026
Floral Design
Will Hunt Lewis
Afton Villa Gardens
Will Hunt Lewis creates floral designs marrying the principles and elements of design and science to create masterpieces that are not only beautiful, but also are created using all the tools and tricks to make them last as long as possible. Set under the majestic Live Oaks of Afton Villa Gardens.
Growing Camellias
Hunter Charbonnet
Butler Greenwood Plantation
Hunter Charbonnet is a world renowned, award winning camellia grower from Covington, LA. This workshop will look at growing camellias in the south, propagating techniques, and maybe even a few tips on how to grown your own award winning camellias. We chose Butler Greenwood for this workshop because it is home to one of the oldest gardens in West Feliciana Parish and maintains several of the oldest varities of camellias. This garden is featured in Early Camellias in Louisiana: 1825-1860: Long-Lost Treasures Rediscovered.
Friday Afternoon, October 23, 2026
The Common Sense Gardener
Dr. Allan Armitage
Rosedown State Historic Site
Blending humor, wisdom, and decades of hands-on experience, Dr. Armitage shares lessons learned from a lifetime among plants—and the people who love them. It’s a joyful, down-to-earth talk for gardeners of every level, filled with practical advice and personal tales that remind us why we dig in the dirt in the first place.
Designing from the Ground Up
Jeff Allen
Audubon State Historic Site
Jeff will walk you through his design process from beginning to end demonstrating how he designs from the ground up. We will discuss creating and existing conditions, plan, schematic design studies illustrating spatial composition in relationship to line, form and mass. He will also, show the working drawings used for construction, progress photos along with the finished product.
From Soggy to Stunning
Lee Rouse
Butler Greenwood Plantation
Building Beautiful Rain Gardens in Louisiana. This workshop uses innovative garden techniques to design your own rain garden for a sustainable, ecologically focused landscaping feature.
Saturday Symposium, October 24, 2026
at Afton Villa Gardens
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8:30am Morning Refreshments and Regisitration
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9:15am Greetings and Introductions
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9:30am Program Begins
Barbara Adkins
Using antiques in the garden and garden design specifically from her upcoming book, Past Forward
Dr. Allan Armitage
The Making of a Garden- From Chaos to Contentment
Jeff Allen
Designing the Classical Landscape and the Art of the Master Plan. Jeff will give a brief overview of the history he has studied that informs his work and will walk us through case studies demonstrating applied knowledge of his work.
Ryan Cole
Jeremy Corkern
Preserving Afton Villa Gardens. Ryan and Jeremy will share Afton Villa through their eyes as they work to develop a master plan to preserve this classic 19th century garden.