A white building preceded by a field of purple flowers, all under a blue sky

26th Annual
Winter Lecture Series

February 24, March 19, & April 23, 2026

11 a.m. to 12 p.m. | Ross Hall

To quote celebrated horticulturist, designer, and philanthropist Bunny Mellon, “Gardening is a way of thinking.” This year’s series features three distinctive thought leaders whose passion for the horticultural world shines through in their work—from the development of a study center that honors Ms. Mellon’s legacy, to the creation of a botanical oasis and mail-order nursery of rare plants in North Carolina, to the captivating art of storytelling that reveals the transformative power of trees and the communities built around them.

Hear from botanist Peter Crane, horticulturist Tony Avent, and author Amy Stewart as they share their garden philosophies, stories, and lessons learned along the way.

CEUs available: LA CES and APLD

Register for the Series

A trellis of vines over a flowered pathway leading to a house door

Peter Crane: The Botanical World of Bunny Mellon

Tuesday, February 24; 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Ross Hall

When Rachel “Bunny” Lambert Mellon passed away in 2014, there was a collective hope that her library and estate could be established as a “study center” under the auspices of the Oak Spring Garden Foundation (OSGF) in Virginia. In 2016, renowned botanist Sir Peter Crane, FRS, and his wife Elinor were given the opportunity to bring this vision to life.

Join President of the Oak Spring Garden Foundation Peter Crane as he shares the many surprising discoveries of this special place in the Virginia Piedmont—from Mrs. Mellon’s unfinished projects to the sheer diversity of her collections—further revealing the life of a restlessly creative and remarkable woman whose life spanned almost the entire 20th century.

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A small waterfall moving through a tree trunk onto a forest floor

Tony Avent: Creating a Plant's Home

Thursday, March 19; 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Ross Hall

“Gardening is so much more than just digging a hole and placing a plant in the ground,” says plantsman Tony Avent. One of the keys to creating and maintaining a diverse garden collection is understanding a plant’s habitat and adaptability.

Explore the complexities of garden microclimates, soils, and habitats with Avent as he shares insights from his experience building Juniper Level Botanic Garden (JLBG) and its accompanying Plant Delights Nursery in central North Carolina, a 28-acre horticultural wonderland and community which consists of 30 greenhouses, expansive research gardens, and several dozen of the world’s largest collections of perennials.

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An illustration of a person in a plaid shirt leaning against a brown tree trunk

Amy Stewart: The Tree Collectors

Thursday, April 23; 11 a.m. to 12 p.m.
Ross Hall

When author Amy Stewart discovered a community of tree collectors, she expected to meet horticultural fanatics driven to plant every species of oak or maple. But she also discovered that the urge to collect trees springs from something deeper and more profound: a longing for community, a vision for the future, or a path to healing and reconciliation.

In this talk, you’ll hear about several of the remarkable people Stewart met from around the world whose lives were transformed by their relationships to trees and how these interactions inspired her newest book, The Tree Collectors: Tales of Arboreal Obsession.

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Location Ross Hall

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