Few gardens have been created in such difficult weather conditions. Located 300 km northeast of Quebec City, the Reford Gardens, created by Elsie Reford, is one of the most northern gardens in North America.
DANS LES JARDINS DE MÉTIS
À la rencontre d’Elsie Reford
ELSIE REFORD
150 Objects of Passion
Lecture and tasting with Patrice Fortier from La société des plantes. Patrice Fortier presents a selection of plants that are as useful as they are pleasing, and that have proven their worth in Que ... (View the event)
Date: 2024-06-02 Place: Aire Desjardins du Grand hall Price: 10$
Laurent Lévesque, Le Conservatoire : Bouquet pour Maxime 2, 2024, digital image The Journées de réflexion are presented by To celebrate the 25th anniversary ... (View the event)
Date: 2024-06-23 - 2024-06-22 Place: Aire Desjardins du Grand hall des Jardins de Métis Price: 0$
Dans cette performance théâtrale, Christine Beaulieu adopte le point de vue du saumon, de l’œuf à l’âge adulte. Elle y raconte tout le trajet qu’il do ... (View the event)
Date: 2024-07-04 Place: La Véranda de Pierre Thibault aux Jardins de Métis Price: 0$
Date: 2024-07-05 Place: La Véranda de Pierre Thibault aux Jardins de Métis Price: 0$
Date: 2024-07-06 Place: La Véranda de Pierre Thibault aux Jardins de Métis Price: 0$
LES SAUMONS DE LA MITIS 2024 | Apéro-théâtre et soirée gourmande en compagnie des artistes Christine Beaulieu, Alice Pascual, Geneviève Lizotte, Frédéri ... (View the event)
Date: 2024-07-06 Place: À La Véranda de Pierre Thibault, puis, à la villa Estevan Price: 250$
The teams from the kitchens, gardens and exhibitions are conspiring to create a memorable evening inspired by the magical outdoor meals that feature in the photo albums of Elsie Reford and her family. ... (View the event)
Date: 2024-08-10 Place: Les Jardins de Métis Price: 250$
To celebrate the 25th anniversary of the International Garden Festival, the Festival is celebrating in style with many events and activities. The Journées de réflexion [Discussion D ... (View the event)
On the eve of the inauguration of its anniversary edition, which will run from June 22 to October 6, 2024, on the theme The Ecology of Possibilities, the Reford Gardens International Garden Festival a ... (View the event)
The International Garden Festival is pleased to launch its fourth call for proposals for the RBC Residencies at La Maison d'Ariane, in the picturesque village of Métis-sur-Mer. This call is ... (View the event)
The International Garden Festival is pleased to announce the projects selected for its 25th edition, titled The Ecology of Possibility, which will run from June 22 to October 6, 2024. On the occasion ... (View the event)
Sainte-Flavie, September 26, 2023. With the help of the Fonds de solidarité FTQ, TELUS, the municipality of Sainte-Flavie and a group of volunteers, the Jardin de bord mer II took root recently ... (View the event)
The International Garden Festival is launching a call for proposals to select designers to create the new temporary gardens for the Festival’s 25th edition, which will open on June 21, 2024, on ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, September 5, 2023 – The International Garden Festival is pleased to announce the start of the RBC autumn residences at the Maison d’Ariane in Métis-sur-Mer. The ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, August 21, 2023 – The Reford Gardens open the temporary exhibition Dernière lueur / Last Light by photographic artist Christine Fitzgerald on Wednesday, August 23. The ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, Quebec, June 24, 2023 – The 24th edition of the International Garden Festival, titled RACINES | ROOTS, is now open to the public. This year, È ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, May 1, 2023 – Les Jardins de Métis is launching a new publication that highlights the horticultural achievements and unique plant collections of Elsie Reford. Dans ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, April 27, 2023 – Les Jardins de Métis/Reford Gardens presents, from June 3 to October 1, 2023, an exhibition exploring the influence of fashion illustrations on the re ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, March 6, 2023 – Les Jardins de Métis is launching a new publication that celebrates the life and contributions of Elsie Reford. The book is being launched at Montreal& ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, Quebec, Canada, January 11, 2023 – The International Garden Festival is pleased to announce the projects selected for its 24th edition, titled ROOTS, which will run from June ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, November 9, 2022 - The International Garden Festival congratulates sculptor Pierre Bourgault, who took part in our 2005 edition, on winning a Governor General’s Award in Visu ... (View the event)
Métis-sur-Mer, November 8, 2022. The International Garden Festival is pleased to launch its third call for proposals for the RBC Residencies at La Maison d'Ariane, in the picturesque villag ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, Québec, Canada, October 3, 2022 – The International Garden Festival is launching a call for proposals to select designers to create the new temporary gardens for the F ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, September 21, 2022 - The International Garden Festival of the Reford Gardens welcomes, from September 5 to October 2, 2022, actress and playwright Camille Paré-Poirier and v ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, September 8, 2022 - Ms. Lise Gagné and Mr. Alexander Reford, respectively Chair of the Board of Directors and Executive Director of the International Garden Festival of the ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, August 28, 2022 - Silent for a century, Elsie Reford’s violin will be played for the first time at a concert on Sunday, August 28 at 1.30 pm at Les Jardins de Métis. C ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, August 11, 2022 – Celebrity chef Ricardo Larrivée will be at Les Jardins de Métis on Wednesday, August 17 to share his culinary magic. To celebrate Queen Elizab ... (View the event)
Grand-Métis, July 13, 2022 – The Reford Gardens invite you to join us for several special events and exhibitions to celebrate the Atlantic salmon, part of the Elsie 150 celebrations Disco ... (View the event)
Created from 1926 to 1958 by pioneering horticulturist Elsie Reford, the Reford Gardens are a National Historic Site of Canada. Some 3,000 species and varieties of plants, including the famous Himalayan blue poppy, are spread over fifteen gardens.
It’s in the summer of 1926 that Elsie Reford (1872-1967) began transforming her fishing camp on the Metis River into a garden. Hundreds of miles from the nearest nursery, Elsie Reford is faced with challenges that would be difficult to imagine today. Where experienced specialists had failed, she succeeded in turning her spruce forest into a gigantic garden that would become one of the largest plant collections of its time. Elsie hired and trained people from the region like farmers and fishing guides in order to turn them into master gardeners. Over three decades, they’ve built a magnificent garden together.
An innovative cultural space, the Reford Gardens welcome a large number of artists each year and present an array of exhibitions scattered throughout the gardens and beyond its grounds.
The Amis des Jardins collection is based on memories and physical traces gathered by the estate owners throughout their lives, as well as on the development of a collection of contemporary works related to the historic and contemporary gardens.
Well established in its community, the Reford Gardens are a cultural hub in the region. Literary teas, outdoor concerts, lectures, training sessions, happy hours, culinary events, outdoor hikes, environmental chores… in short, a program for all tastes.
Rooted in history, but resolutely looking to the future, the Villa Estevan Lodge restaurant, Café-Bistrot Le Bufton and the Buvette des Jardins feature inspired local cuisine. Our chef Frédérick Boucher and his brigade work with our gardeners to develop innovative dishes that evolve with the seasons and harvest.
Click on the picture to enlarge it
Discover a fantastic ally of the Reford Gardens – Pierre and his firm Umanium, a pillar for the Gardens’ museology department.
We celebrate here the passing of M. Lavoie, the first director of the Reford Gardens when it was open to the public.
Day in and day out, we get photos from visitors or see them posted and shared on social media. Now it is our turn to show off a few photos of our own.